A pink hummingbird(1) battled with a weather-beaten(2) shed Monday for the Turner prize, one of the world's most contentious(3) art awards, but they face stiff competition from a pair of pallid(4) buttocks(5).

The quirky(6) nature of the Turner prize entries invariably draws scorn(7) from the critics, but up to 100,000 people flock to the Tate Britain museum every year to judge for themselves.

Simon Starling pitched for(8) the 25,000 pound prize this year with an electric bicycle he rode across a Spanish desert and "Shedboatshed" -- a shed he turned into a boat, floated down the Rhine(9) and then rebuilt as a shed again.

For those seeking enlightenment(10) as to what it all means, he explained that his works were "the physical manifestation(11) of my thought process."

Jim Lambie takes the shortlist(12) prize for the most lurid(13) exhibit -- garishly(14) painted bird ornaments(15) he found in a junk shop and laid out in a technicolor(16) room that looks like a psychedelic(17) trip from the Sixties.

The Turner offers Britain's scandal-hungry(18) tabloids(19) an annual opportunity to mock(20).

This year offers plenty of grist to the mill, but Tate Britain director Stephen Deuchar insisted British modern art was "in roaringly(21) good health.

"I think in the last five to six years people have become much less scared of contemporary art. This is one of the most engaging and accessible of Turner shortlists," he told Reuters.

"This is one of the few contemporary art shows that touches the public," he added, and few would dispute the Turner's ability to stir up(22) controversy.

In 1998, Chris Ofili won the Turner with a Virgin Mary figure made of elephant dung(23). In 1995 Damien Hirst won with a pickled(24) sheep.

周一，世界上最具争议的特纳艺术大赛开幕了。一只粉色蜂雀与一座饱经风雪的小屋的竞争非常激烈，但来自一副苍白臀部的压力也不容小窥。
 


特纳艺术大赛诡异的参赛作品总是引来评论家的大肆嘲笑，但是这并不影响每年十万人次蜂拥至英国泰特博物馆来为他们自己做裁判。

为了两万五千英镑的奖金，西蒙·斯塔林带了两样参赛作品。一辆电动自行车，他曾骑着它穿越西班牙的沙漠；一个“屋船屋”，他先把一间木屋改装成一艘船，用它划过了莱茵河，然后又把它还原成了一间小木屋。

当人们问起“屋船屋”有什么意义的时候，他解释说：它是“我的思维变化的物理体现。”

吉姆·兰姆比克凭借最绚丽的作品进入了最终候选人名单—一只被涂染的十分华丽的小鸟装饰。他在一家旧货店发现了它，把它放进一间五彩斑斓的房间中，看起来就象六十年代的绚彩之旅。

每年，特纳大赛都能为英国的八卦小报提供一次嘲弄的机会。

今年也不例外，特纳又为磨坊提供了足够的谷物，但是英国泰特博物馆馆长斯蒂芬·德查坚持说英国现代艺术是“生机勃发的。”

他对路透社说：“我觉得在过去的五到六年中，人们已经逐渐不那样害怕现代艺术了。这次特纳大赛的提名作品最吸引人也最易于理解。”

“特纳是极少几个可以深入大众的现代艺术展之一。”他补充说，没有人怀疑特纳激起争议的能力。

1998年，克里斯·奥菲利凭借一座用大象粪堆的处女玛丽像夺得当年的特纳奖。1995年，达米安·和斯特用一只烂醉如泥的绵羊获胜。