THERISE OF GRAYSON PERRY
Normally,whenyouvisitafamousartist,youaremetbyan assistant.WhenyoupressGraysonPerry'sbuzzer,itisGrayson Perrywhoanswersthedoor.Helikestodoeverythinghimself ifhecan.Heoffersteaandprovidesthebiscuits.Hemakeshis ownpotsfromscratch,coilingthemlaboriously,layerbylayer, byhand.Hedrawseveryinchofhishugeandextraordinary printsandtapestries.Itispartlyamatterofwantingcontroland areluctancetodelegate,butitgoesmuchdeeperthanthat. Itiscentraltohisaestheticandmoraloutlookthathetakesfull responsibilityforhisart.Heistheartistandheisnotgoingtolet anybodyelsemakeit,orifhehasto,aswithhisgiantmachinemadetapestries,hewillwatcheverysteplikeahawk.
Hestartsfromthepositionoftheamateurandembraces thehandmade,thewonky,theaccidental:'Mybasicthrustis tohaveagoatsomethingbeforeIknowhowtodoit,'hesays.1 Hedescribeshisneedtostay'authenticallyinept'.2 Earlyon, hispotsusedtocrackandexplodeinthekiln,wastingweeksof work,butitwasanimportantpartofthecreativeprocess. Hisapproachismorelikethatofan'outsider'artist,someone
PatrickElliott
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Detail of Reclining Artist, 2017 (cat.7)
