README: Data from the First Decade of the John Moores Painting Prize, 1957 About the dataset Title: Data from the First Decade of the John Moores Painting Prize, 1957 Dataset creators: Sophie Hatchwell; Hana Leaper Creator affiliations: Liverpool John Moores University ORCID identifiers: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9025-4896; https://orcid.org/0009-0006-5717-9453 Rights holder(s): Sophie Hatchwell; Hana Leaper Year of publication: 2026 Resource language: English Metadata language: English Collection period: 1 February 2021 to 6 November 2026 Repository record: https://opendata.ljmu.ac.uk/id/eprint/293 DOI: https://doi.org/10.24377/LJMU.d.00000293 Description This dataset was created through a systematic audit of the catalogue for the inaugural John Moores Painting Prize exhibition of 1957. The audit was undertaken collectively with the Post-War Painting in Regional Collections research group. The dataset captures and structures information originally recorded in the exhibition catalogue, transforming a historical document into an open-source resource for the study of post-war British art, exhibition histories and collecting practices. The dataset includes information on exhibited artists and artworks, alongside biographical and demographic data such as place of residence, region of origin, gender, age, occupation and educational background, where available. By standardising and enriching catalogue records, the dataset enables quantitative and qualitative analysis of artistic mobility, regional artistic ecosystems, gender representation, professional networks and patterns of participation in a major post-war art competition. Designed for reuse by researchers, curators and heritage professionals, the dataset supports investigations into the development of post-war British painting and the role of regional exhibitions in shaping artistic careers and public collections. It also provides a foundation for comparative and longitudinal studies across subsequent John Moores Painting Prize exhibitions. Data collection method: Systematic audit of an exhibition catalogue Primary source type: Exhibition catalogues How to cite this dataset Hatchwell, Sophie and Leaper, Hana (2026). Data from the First Decade of the John Moores Painting Prize, 1957. [Data Collection]. Liverpool John Moores University Data Repository. https://doi.org/10.24377/LJMU.d.00000293 Contact details Principal investigator email: H.M.Leaper@ljmu.ac.uk Alternative or forwarding contact: Sophie Hatchwell Terms of use The dataset files are available under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International licence (CC BY 4.0). Reusers may share and adapt the material for any purpose, provided appropriate credit is given, a link to the licence is supplied, and any changes are indicated. Licence: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ Contents File Format Description 1957 All artists (1).xlsx Microsoft Excel spreadsheet Data for all artists recorded in the 1957 exhibition catalogue. 1957 Excluding invited artists.xlsx Microsoft Excel spreadsheet Dataset excluding invited artists from the 1957 exhibition records. 1957 Prizewinners.xlsx Microsoft Excel spreadsheet Data relating to the 1957 John Moores Painting Prize winners. 1957 edited guide.pdf PDF document Edited guide accompanying the 1957 dataset. All four files are deposited as data and are available under CC BY 4.0. Methods The dataset was generated through a systematic audit of the catalogue for the inaugural 1957 John Moores Painting Prize exhibition, undertaken collectively with the Post-War Painting in Regional Collections research group. Information from the catalogue was captured, structured, standardised and enriched to support reuse and analysis. The records cover exhibited artists and artworks and, where available, include place of residence, region of origin, gender, age, occupation and educational background. The deposited resources separate the full artist dataset, a version excluding invited artists, and prizewinner data. The edited guide provides supporting documentation. Related resources * Exploring exhibition histories: an audit of the John Moores Painting Prize 1957 catalogue - https://artuk.org/discover/stories/exploring-exhibition-histories-an-audit-of-the-john-moores-painting-prize-1957-catalogue * Works from the 1957 John Moores Painting Prize - https://artuk.org/discover/curations/works-from-the-1957-john-moores-painting-prize README for LJMU Data Repository record 293