Ally Fallon, the youngest-ever winner of the John Moores Painting Prize, is returning to Liverpool's Walker Art Gallery with a major new solo exhibition. The Manchester-based artist, now 28, won the prestigious award in September 2025 while working as a teacher, having only begun taking painting seriously during lockdown.
A Prize-Winning Debut
His winning painting, If You Were Certain, What Would You Do Then?, was selected anonymously from more than 3,000 entries, earning him a £25,000 prize and the opportunity to stage his own exhibition at the gallery. Just over a year later, his solo exhibition, The Shape of a Room, opens on Saturday, November 14.
Since winning, Fallon has joined Hales Gallery, which is based in London and New York, staged his first solo exhibition with the gallery over the summer, and presented work at Frieze. He has also spent much of the past year preparing the new collection for the Walker, having put teaching aside to concentrate on painting full-time.
Full-Time Dedication
Fallon said the recognition has brought new opportunities and a busy schedule, but one of the biggest changes has been being able to dedicate himself entirely to his passion. He told the ECHO: "I'm still getting used to this feeling of being able to dedicate myself fully to painting in the studio and being able to wake up every day and go to the studio. It really is my dream."
He added: "Even at times when it's been a bit pressurised and sometimes stressful, it's just a privilege, and I don't think that's fully ever going to sink in." Although he said he would be happy to return to teaching at some point, he believes the additional time in the studio has allowed his work to develop in an exciting way.
Exploring Spaces and Abstraction
Titled The Shape of a Room, the exhibition explores the relationship between recognisable spaces and abstract painting. A recurring feature throughout the collection is the use of tiled floors, many inspired by photographs Fallon has taken on doorsteps and in pubs, particularly in Manchester and Italy. He uses these familiar surfaces as an entrance point for viewers before introducing more abstract forms, colours and gestures.
Fallon said the title was taken from a book about Sienese painting by author Hisham Matar. He said: "I like to think of my paintings as rooms, and exploring the different conditions of the spaces that I paint is really important. You can expect paintings that all feature different variations of these tiled floors."
He explained: "The function of those is to try and operate as a concrete entrance into the painting, almost as if you could walk into them. There's something immediately recognisable that functions as almost like a portal into the painting. Once you're in the painting, as it were, I like to take a little bit more of an abstract exit through the painting."
Inspiring Reactions and Regional Access
The paintings combine representational and abstract elements, with Fallon drawing inspiration from artists including Caravaggio and Rembrandt, as well as British abstraction. He hopes visitors will spend time looking closely at the works, although he said he can never predict exactly what people will take away from them.
He added: "I've had lots of great feedback from people that say things like, 'Oh, that reminds me of a floor', or that a mark reminds them of something they saw in a part of their life that I obviously couldn't have planned. Once I've let them out of the studio and put them on a wall, people's reactions to them are sort of out of my control. I'm just grateful for anyone who goes to see them."
Despite the success that has followed his win, Fallon said it is still surreal to think that people will be travelling to Liverpool specifically to see his work. He said: "You spend a lot of time by yourself in the studio. Most of the year I've just spent alone making paintings, and then all of a sudden you're in a room full of people looking at them. That's always two ends of the spectrum, really."
For Fallon, the opportunity to exhibit at the Walker also carries a significance beyond his own career. He believes institutions such as the Liverpool gallery play an important role in ensuring people outside London have access to the same opportunities and standard of arts and culture. He said: "The Walker specifically is a real beacon of the art institution in the north. I think it's really important that they're looked after and properly funded and equally funded to everything that's happening in London. Having these institutions outside London, in Liverpool, and the history that they hold there is really important for making sure that a more diverse group of people in the nation are able to access the same level of arts that are available in bigger cities like London."
The Shape of a Room opens in Room 13 at Walker Art Gallery on Saturday, November 14, and runs until May 16, 2027. Entry is free.
