Judge Panel
We express our utmost gratitude for the contribution made by our expert team to the competition. Their impartial feedback and valuable insights will be provided to the participants' entries, with a focus on cultivating the next generation.
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Farooq Chaudhry OBE
( Chair of Tate Modern Advisory Group )
Farooq is Chair of Tate Modern Advisory Group .In 2000, Chaudhry joined forces with artist Akram Khan to establish the internationally acclaimed Akram Khan Company. Through his visionary leadership style, Chaudhry prioritized creativity and developed innovative business models to support Khan's artistic aspirations.
He serves as a witness at the School for Social Entrepreneurs and is a member of the Global Future Council. In 2008, the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs included him in their list of the world's top cultural actors and entrepreneurs.
Chaudhry is a witness of the School for Social Entrepreneurs. The French Ministry of Foreign Affairs acknowledged him in a list of the world’s top hundred cultural actors and entrepreneurs. He is also on the advisory board of Global Future, an independent think tank campaigning for Britain to be a vibrant and open nation that reaches out to the world.
His work has received strong support from the London Arts Council. In recognition of his outstanding contributions to the arts, he was awarded the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in 2019.
Jo Ruxton MBE
(Ocean Generation)
Jo Ruxton is a passionate campaigner for the Ocean. After achieving her BSc Hons in Biological Sciences from the London University her career in conservation took off in the ‘90’s when she started the first marine programme for WWF in Hong Kong, where she lived for 14 years. During that time, she was a key advocate for the establishment of the first marine protected areas there.
She was a lead member of the BBC Natural History Unit’s diving team for many years and has been producing and directing underwater sequences since the first days of filming on the award-winning Blue Planet series in 1997. During her 12 years at the BBC she was involved in numerous underwater films from Antarctica to the pristine reefs of the Caribbean and the Pacific Ocean for the BBC and the Discovery Channel.
Recognising the need to increase the conservation messages in the BBC films she worked on, Jo decided to leave to work independently. When she started to hear about the devastating problem of plastic waste in the ocean, she knew she had to tell the story of the ocean as it really was, and not how the beautiful wildlife documentaries portrayed it to be. She began to raise the funds needed to make the film, A Plastic Ocean and it took 2 years just to get the filming started. The more she learned about the subject the more determined she was to tell the story as research was revealing a much bigger problem than she had ever imagined. It was 8 years before her multi-award-winning film, A Plastic Ocean, was finally released in 2017 in more than 70 countries and in 15 languages.
Jo is the Founder of Ocean Generation (UK registered Charity No. 1139843 (formerly Plastic Oceans). Ocean Generation exists to restore a healthy relationship between humanity and the our Ocean, by tackling ocean threats through science and storytelling. Their youth engagement programmes are empowering young people to fall in love with our Ocean and to find their own unique way to safeguard it in their daily lives and throughout their careers.
Jo is an experienced and engaging speaker who has addressed audiences from schools to corporations, in parliaments and government establishments and to audiences throughout the world after screenings of her film. She was invited to at COP 26 in Glasgow and during the G7 summit in Cornwall and has been involved in several brand ambassador and influencer campaigns with companies including Longchamp and Guess.
Awards and accolades
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Jo was awarded the MBE for Services to Marine Conservation in the Queen’s 2022 New Year’s Honours.
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Featured in the 2018 Sunday Times, ‘Alternative Rich List’ – celebrating people who are rich in different ways. https://www.thetimes.co.uk/spon/alternative-rich-list/
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Winner 2018 Daily Telegraph ‘Pioneering Woman of the Year’
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Jo was listed by British Airways as one of the ‘100 Modern Britons who helped shape our country’ in celebration of their 100-year anniversary in 2019. Copy and paste this link to watch here:https://youtu.be/khXIOFdWrTc
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Jo lives in Cornwall close to her daughters and granddaughters and when not diving on location she enjoys cold-water sea swimming, whatever the season.
Leigh Clarke
(University of the Arts London & Royal Academy of Arts)
Leigh Clarke is UK based artist with an international career spanning over 25 years since his graduation from the Royal College of Art. His diverse printmaking practice has led him to undertake gallery exhibitions, publicly funded projects, performances, residencies, and publications. Notable exhibitions include those at The Whitechapel Gallery, The Turner Contemporary, The Institute of Contemporary Art and the Royal Academy of Art. He has engaged the public in participatory projects at the Centre de la Gravure et de l'Image imprimée Belgium, with Create London and Airspace Gallery Stoke-on-Trent.
He has taught and given lectures in many UK Universities and is Senior Lecturer in Printmaking and Illustration at The London College of Communication, University of Arts London and Print Tutor at the Royal Academy Schools, Royal Academy of Arts London. He has represented UAL at two International Printmaking Workshops at Xi’an Academy of Fine Arts China and Elam School of Fine Arts, University of Auckland New Zealand. His studio is in Margate, England.
Pat Naldi
(University of the Arts London)
Pat Naldi is an artist and lecturer in MA Fine Art at Central Saint Martins, University of the Arts London from which she also holds a PhD. Her research addresses the geopolitical, environmental, socio‐spatial, and ideological construction and operation of landscapes. She works with video, installation, live-events, photography, and writing. Exhibiting widely in the UK and internationally, Naldi’s work was most recently exhibited in ‘The Horror Show! A Twisted Tale of Modern Britain’, Somerset House, London. Other works have been shown in exhibitions including at Tate Britain, Palacio de la Diputación de Cadiz, Spain, Rome Film Festival, ZKM Center for Art & Media, Karlsruhe, Estorick Collection, London, and Centro Andaluz de Arte Contemporaneo, Seville. Her most recent book chapter 'Managing Arcadia: From the King's Cross Estate to the Bretton Estate' was published in 'British Art and the Environment: Changes, Challenges, and Responses Since the Industrial Revolution', Routledge.
Naldi was awarded “The Arctic Circle Artist and Scientist Expedition Residency” for April 2022, where together with a group of international artists, scientists, guides, and crew, crossed the Barents Sea, and sailed the high Arctic Archipelago of Svalbard aboard a barquentine tall ship. Her essay “The End of Reference” for NiCHE Network in Canadian History and Environment (August 2022), and solo exhibition at Tension Fine Art Gallery, London (May 2023), engage with some of her research conducted in the Arctic Circle.
Mikolai Berg
(University of the Arts London)
Mikolai Berg currently holds a position as a Lecturer in Digital Photography at The London College of Fashion, University of the Arts London. His previous professional background is in photography, moving image, and production.
Mikolai’s career as a photographer spanned over 10 years during which he established himself successfully in his own niche in fashion photography, collaborating with brands such as a range of high profile and luxury brands worldwide.
His visual practice focused on commercial and editorial photography of children’s and young adult fashion.
Since the mid-2010s he started practicing as an Associate Lecturer at the UAL, which in turn led him to be offered a position as the Year Leader on the Fashion Photography course.
Mikolai is led by his passion for socio-environmental change, which he has had the opportunity to implement into his teaching practice. He has successfully introduced the importance of sustainability in creative practice, a curriculum ethos foregrounded by the LCF in 2007.
As a result of his dedication to this topic, he was appointed by the Media School at the LCF, as the Programme Climate and Sustainability Lead in 2021, and has been working closely with Climate Advocates to oversee the embedding process of climate change and sustainability in the curriculum at the UAL.
Spring Xue
(British Artist)
Spring Xue is an exceptional British artist and cultural ambassador who serves as the Chair of the UK Chinese Artists Association, Vice President of China Calligraphy and Painting World UK Committee,Chairman of China Calligraphy and Painting World UK Committee. She is dedicated to fostering cultural exchange between China and the UK. Additionally, she is the Director and Principal of a British institution that provides art education for children and has long been devoted to the cause of promoting children's art education.
Spring Xue teaching methodology stands out for its distinctiveness and effectiveness in cultivating students' artistic abilities.Under her guidance, students at her art institution achieve these impressive results through her unique teaching methodology.
Spring Xue artwork possesses a unique cultural identity, blending the essence of Asian and Western cultures. As a world-renowned British artist and art educator, Spring Xue's artworks have been exhibited worldwide and auctioned in the high-end UK market. They have been collected by many prominent figures, including members of the British royal family. As an international artist, she employs innovative and creative methods to explore human survival and development, and her unique artistic style embodies her concern for the world and sustainable development.
Furthermore, she is an active social welfare worker who uses her art to support charitable organisations and public welfare causes.
Thomas English
(World Industry Expert)
Thomas English is a multidisciplinary artist who specializes in directing and cinematography for advertising, film, and television. He uses cameras, VFX, and special effects to tell stories and aims to touch the human soul.
He has directed commercials for many international brands such as Adidas, Nike, Yamaha, Oppo, Samsung, Airbnb, Chelsea Football Club, Skoda, among others. His work is known for its visual spectacle and unique narrative style, and has gained widespread praise and recognition.
In addition to commercial advertising, Thomas English is also actively involved in film and art. He has directed and shot several documentaries and short films, many of which have won awards. His recent film works include Mission: Impossible, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, and The Expendables, as well as contributing to the production of films such as 101 Dalmatians, Victoria, and Kingsman: The Secret Service. He started as a video artist creating touring visual effects for musicians and still creates content for live shows of artists such as Kylie Minogue.
Thomas English is primarily an industry professional, but also serves as a guest lecturer. He speaks at many educational events in the field, including giving talks on fashion art direction at Central Saint Martins.
Yifan
(World Industry Expert)
Yifan is a distinguished tech designer possessing a multifaceted background in visual effects, computer graphics, and user experience design. With over eight years of experience in the film, commercial, and animation industries, she brings unparalleled perspective and expertise to her role as a tech designer at Schibsted's futures lab. Yifan specialises in speculative design, user research, and prototyping, dedicating herself to the exploration of plausible futures and the promotion of innovation for Schibsted's brands through experimentation with emerging technology.
Upon graduating from Bournemouth University with a Bachelor of Arts in Computer Visualisation and Animation in 2013, Yifan commenced her journey as a visual effects artist. Her initial professional experience was at Blue Zoo Animation Studio, where she served as a lighting artist, contributing to the lighting and rendering of six episodes of the renowned BBC TV series "Q Pootle 5."
In February 2014, Yifan joined Frame store, where she contributed to an array of high-profile projects, including "Guardians of the Galaxy," "Avengers: Age of Ultron," "Everest," "Dracula Untold," "Beauty and the Beast," "Guardians of the Galaxy 1&2," "Avengers: Infinity Wars," and "Thor: Ragnarok." There, Yifan demonstrated not only her artistic skills in creating beautiful visuals but also her technical versatility by writing shaders for various pipeline processes.
In 2019, Yifan joined Storm Studios AS as a Senior Lighting & Look Development Artist, further refining her skills and contributing to numerous projects, such as the Netflix show "West World," the HBO series "Watchman," and several Norwegian films.
Currently, Yifan holds the position of Tech Designer at Schibsted, where she has been employed since 2022. She works with various emerging technologies, including generative AI, to drive innovation for Schibsted's media brands. Yifan was recently invited by the Associated Press to participate as a panelist in a discussion on the potential impacts of generative AI in news and media.
