Dan Guthrie

I am an artist whose work explores representations and mis-representations of Black Britishness, questioning not only what is shown, but what remains unseen on screen. My latest project, Empty Alcove / Rotting Figure, which continued my long-standing engagement with the Blackboy Clock, a racist object publicly displayed in my hometown of Stroud, Gloucestershire, was co-commissioned by Spike Island and Chisenhale Gallery, and toured both venues earlier this year. I am currently based in London but from 2026, I will be a resident artist at the Rijksakademie van beeldende kunsten, Amsterdam.

HOW DOES YOUR SUBMITTED WORK RESPOND TO THE CIRCA 20:25 MANIFESTO?
glider.mov reworks some unused footage from an older film of mine, Coaley Peak (A Fragment), which was made to fulfil a commission that I wasn’t able to complete. Making this film was a way of releasing some of what’s been taking up space in my brain and on my hard drive. Hopefully others can use what I’ve shot as a moment of sanctuary and recharge, even if I’m no longer able to.

IF AWARDED THE £30,000 CIRCA PRIZE, WHAT 10-MINUTE WORK WOULD YOU CREATE – AND HOW WOULD IT EMBODY THE SPIRIT OF REFUGIA?
My mother was an extra in a horror film playing a Black female sex worker for a montage filmed in London but set in NYC. These six seconds are her only film appearance, and I want to assemble a transatlantic chorus of Black women to voice different interpretations of this footage; an audio describer, a film studies academic, a sex work advocate, and my mum talking about the experience in her own words. This work would embody Refugia by bringing together a constellation of voices to spotlight someone who could be passing underneath the Piccadilly Lights every day.

FOLLOW DAN GUTHRIE ON INSTAGRAM

Funding for the CIRCA PRIZE is generated entirely by the #CIRCAECONOMY, a circular model that reinvests proceeds from affordable art sold on CIRCA.ART into new public art commissions, charitable causes, art education and prizes. Since launching in 2020, the initiative has raised over £1 Million, placing artists and communities at the centre of an economy that continually reinvests in the future of art and culture.

The CIRCA PRIZE 2025 winners will be revealed LIVE in Piccadilly Circus on Monday 13 October, with a special 30-minute award ceremony starting at 20:00 BST. Don’t miss it!