Where: Cadogan Hall
London
SW1X 9DQ
United Kingdom
London
What: David Shrigley @ Cadogan Hall
When:
Join acclaimed art curator and broadcaster Kate Bryan and celebrated artist David Shrigley as they celebrate the launch of How to Art, the new, essential guide to understanding art, written by Kate with artwork by David. Have you ever said “I don’t know much about art… but I love David Hockney?” or felt guilty that seeing the Mona Lisa didn’t give you an electrifying experience? Kate wants you to know that you are not alone in feeling anxious around art and that you don’t have to get a degree in art history to be allowed an opinion on it. Just like food, music or movies, we all have an innate ability to have a relationship with art – and the good news is you don’t have to like it all! Kate Bryan has worked in the art world for over 20 years – from the British Museum to leading a global private collection of over 10,000 contemporary artworks – and she believes it is time to blow apart the traditional art world hierarchies that leave many of us feeling like we are on the outside looking in. Her witty and straightforward book is about the joy that art can bring us, and how, despite appearances otherwise, it is in easy reach. Teaming up with her is David Shrigley, one of Britain’s most beloved contemporary artists, whose brilliant sculptures, drawings, and installations have delighted audiences worldwide. From his Turner Prize nomination to his iconic thumbs-up sculpture on Trafalgar Square’s Fourth Plinth, Shrigley’s irreverent humour and sharp observations have made him a rare creature – a down-to-earth, museum-level artist. Together, they’ve created How to Art, a refreshingly honest and entertaining guide that cuts through art world pretensions to reveal the ways in which art can bring us all joy. It promises to be an enlightening and amusing afternoon as two of the art world’s most engaging and lively voices share their insights, anecdotes, and perhaps a few trade secrets. Don’t miss this unique opportunity to discover how to navigate, understand, and genuinely have fun with art with two down-to-earth art lovers who know that art should be for everyone.
How Much:
www.bandsintown.com InStockLondon
SW1X 9DQ
United Kingdom
Who: David Shrigley
David Shrigley is a Glasgow-based artist. Born in Macclesfield on September 17th 1968, he grew up in Oadby, Leicestershire, England. He attended City of Leicester Polytechnic’s Art & Design course in 1987-1988, and subsequently studied at Glasgow School of Art from 1988-1991. Although he has worked with various media, most of his work is in the form of mordantly humorous cartoons released in softcover books or postcard packs. He exhibits much of his environmental art on his website.
Like the poet Ivor Cutler, Shrigley finds humour in flat depictions of the inconsequential, the unavailing and the bizarre - although he is far fonder than Cutler of violent or otherwise disquieting subject matter. Shrigley’s work has two of the characteristics often encountered in outsider art - an odd viewpoint, and (in some of his work) very limited technique. His freehand line is often weak, which jars with his frequent use of a ruler; his forms are often very crude; and annotations in his drawings are poorly executed and frequently contain crossings-out. However, in authentic outsider art the artist has no choice but to produce work in his or her own way, even if that work is freakish in content and inept in execution. It is likely that Shrigley has chosen his style and range of subject matter for comic effect.
Shrigley is a graduate of the Environmental Art course at the Glasgow School of Art. He is the author of several books and has directed the video for Blur’s ‘Good Song’. His work is exhibited all over the world. From 2005 he has contributed a cartoon for the Guardian’s Weekend magazine every saturday. He is represented in Paris by the Yvon Lambert Gallery.
David Shrigley co-directed an animate!-commissioned film with award winning director Chris Shepherd called Who I Am And What I Want, based on Shrigley’s book of the same title. Kevin Eldon voiced its main character, Pete. He also produced a series of drawings and t-shirt designs for the 2006 Triptych festival, a Scottish music festival lasting for three to four days in three cities. He has also designed twelve different covers for Deerhoof’s forthcoming 2007 record, Friend Opportunity.