ART CITIES:Sydney-Grayson Perry

Grayson Perry is mainly for his ceramic vases and cross-dressing. Perry’s vases have classical forms and are decorated in bright colours, depicting subjects at odds with their attractive appearance. There is a strong autobiographical element in his work, in which images of Perry as “Claire”, his female alter-ego, often appear. He was awarded the prestigious Turner Prize in 2003 and in 2011 combined his own works with historical artefacts from the British Museum collection in the record-breaking exhibition “Grayson Perry: The Tomb of the Unknown Craftsman”.

By Dimitris Lempesis
Photo: Museum of Contemporary Art Australia Archive

The first major exhibition in Australia of the works of award-winning British artist Grayson Perry, entitled “Grayson Perry: My Pretty Little Art Career”, is held at the Museum of Contemporary Art Australia as part of the Sydney International Art Series. Grayson Perry is acclaimed for his ceramics, sculptures in iron and bronze, drawings, prints and ambitious, large-scale tapestries which chronicle contemporary life and society. Various themes are explored through his multi-faceted practice including the history of taste and social class in Britain, religious and folk iconography, and representations of sexuality and masculinity. With a keen eye for detail and a love of the popular and vernacular, Perry infuses his artworks with a sly humour and reflection on society past and present. The “Walthamstow Tapestry” (2009) presents the story of a man’s life from birth to death as he journeys across a landscape dotted with the brand names of a typical English high street, fast-food chains, electronics giants, supermarkets. The design and execution reminiscent of a medieval tapestry, only one with motorbikes and Louis Vuitton handbags. The six-part tapestry cycle “The Vanity of Small Differences” (2012) updates William Hogarth’s Rake’s Progress (1733) with the story of the rise and fall of Tom Rakewell, a computer software millionaire who dies a tragic death when he crashes his sports car into a lamppost. For this, and in other works too, Perry’s drawing style is reminiscent of cartooning and street art, an ungodly mix ubiquitous on cafe walls the world over. Perry’s most celebrated works are his ceramics, big pots in various shades of black and gold that chart personal stories of his transvestism and alienation from mainstream British society, works that carry more than a hint of sorrow and bitter sarcasm. The artist’s highly decorated pots in particular reveal a panoply of imagery ranging from the highly personal to the political, their subjects including his own family, the art world, Biblical stories, the royal family, and images of warfare and sexual fantasy.Perry’s transvestism and feminine alter ego ‘Claire’ emerges through his practice as a recurring visual motif. A contemporary of the YBA (Young British Artists) generation, he has forged a distinctive career that sits apart from the cooler theoretical approach of some of his peers, favouring a more flamboyant, accessible aesthetic that blurs the division of high art and popular culture.

Info: Curator: Rachel Kent, Museum of Contemporary Art Australia, 140 George Street, The Rocks, Sydney, Duration: 10/12/15-1/5/16, Days & Hours: Mon-Wed & Fri-Sun 10:00-17:00, Thu 10:00-21:00, www.mca.com.au