Grayson Perry (born 1960) is an English contemporary artist, writer and broadcaster. He is known for his ceramic vases, tapestries, and

cross-dressing Cross-dressing is the act of wearing clothes usually worn by a different gender. From as early as pre-modern history, cross-dressing has been practiced in order to disguise, comfort, entertain, and self-express oneself. Cross-dressing has play ...

, as well as his observations of the contemporary arts scene, and for dissecting British "prejudices, fashions and foibles". 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, and "Alan Measles", his childhood teddy bear, often appear. He has made a number of documentary television programmes and has curated exhibitions. He has published two autobiographies, ''Grayson Perry: Portrait of the Artist as a Young Girl'' (2007) and ''The Descent of Man'' (2016), written and illustrated a graphic novel, ''Cycle of Violence'' (2012), written a book about art, ''Playing to the Gallery'' (2014), and published his illustrated ''Sketchbooks'' (2016). Various books describing his work have been published. In 2013 he delivered the BBC

Reith Lectures The Reith Lectures is a series of annual BBC radio lectures given by leading figures of the day. They are commissioned by the BBC and broadcast on Radio 4 and the World Service. The lectures were inaugurated in 1948 to mark the historic contribu ...

. Perry has had solo exhibitions at the Bonnefantenmuseum, Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam, the

Barbican Centre The Barbican Centre is a performing arts centre in the Barbican Estate of the City of London and the largest of its kind in Europe. The centre hosts classical and contemporary music concerts, theatre performances, film screenings and art exhi ...

, the

British Museum The British Museum is a public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is among the largest and most comprehensive in existence. It docum ...

and the Serpentine Gallery in London, the

Arnolfini Arnolfini is an international arts centre and gallery in Bristol, England. It has a programme of contemporary art exhibitions, artist's performance, music and dance events, poetry and book readings, talks, lectures and cinema. There is also a ...

in Bristol,

The Andy Warhol Museum The Andy Warhol Museum is located on the North Shore of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in the United States. It is the largest museum in North America dedicated to a single artist. The museum holds an extensive permanent collection of art and archive ...

in Pittsburgh, and the 21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art, Kanazawa, Japan. His work is held in the permanent collections of the British Council and Arts Council,

Crafts Council The Crafts Council is the national development agency for contemporary craft in the United Kingdom, and is funded by Arts Council England. History The Crafts Advisory Committee was formed in 1971 to advise the Minister for the Arts, David Eccles ...

, Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam,

Tate Tate is an institution that houses, in a network of four art galleries, the United Kingdom's national collection of British art, and international modern and contemporary art. It is not a government institution, but its main sponsor is the U ...

and

Victoria and Albert Museum The Victoria and Albert Museum (often abbreviated as the V&A) in London is the world's largest museum of applied arts, decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 2.27 million objects. It was founded in 1852 and nam ...

, London. He was awarded the

Turner Prize The Turner Prize, named after the English painter J. M. W. Turner, is an annual prize presented to a British visual artist. Between 1991 and 2016, only artists under the age of 50 were eligible (this restriction was removed for the 2017 award) ...

in 2003. He was interviewed about the win and resulting press in

Sarah Thornton Sarah L. Thornton (born 1965) is a writer, ethnographer and sociologist of culture. Thornton has authored three books and many articles about artists, the art market, technology and design, the history of music technology, dance clubs, raves ...

's ''Seven Days in the Art World''. In 2008 he was ranked number 32 in ''

The Daily Telegraph ''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a national British daily broadsheet newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed across the United Kingdom and internationally. It was fo ...

''s list of the "100 most powerful people in

British culture British culture is influenced by the combined nations' history; its historically Christian religious life, its interaction with the cultures of Europe, the traditions of England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland and the impact of the British Empire. ...

". In 2012, Perry was among the British cultural icons selected by artist Peter Blake to appear in a new version of his most famous artwork—the Beatles' '' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band'' album cover—to celebrate the British cultural figures of his life.

Personal life

Early life and education

Born into a working-class family, Perry was four years old when his father, Tom, left home after discovering his mother, Jean, was having an affair with a milkman, whom she later married and who Perry has claimed was violent. Perry's sister, Christine, is married to Binatone heir Roddy McDougall, and is the MD of the company's big button telephone division. The couple live in Scotland. Subsequently, he spent an unhappy childhood moving between his parents and created a fantasy world based around his

teddy Teddy is an English language given name, usually a hypocorism of Edward or Theodore. It may refer to: People Nickname * Teddy Atlas (born 1956), boxing trainer and fight commentator * Teddy Bourne (born 1948), British Olympic epee fencer * Tedd ...

in order to cope with his sense of anxiety. He considers that a person's early experiences are important in shaping their aesthetic and sexuality. Perry describes his first sexual experience at the age of seven when he tied himself up in his pyjamas. Following the encouragement of his art teacher, Perry decided to study art. He did an art foundation course at

Braintree College Braintree Campus, formerly known as Braintree College, is a further education college based in Braintree, Essex. It is a constituent college of Colchester Institute. The college was originally an independently controlled institution, but merged ...

of Further Education from 1978 to 1979. He spent a short period of his school life at

King Edward VI Grammar School, Chelmsford King Edward VI Grammar School, or KEGS, is a British grammar school with academy status located in the city of Chelmsford, Essex, England. It takes pupils between the ages of 11 and 18, ie. school years 7 to 13. For years 7 to 11 the school is b ...

(KEGS), but mainly he studied for a BA in

fine art In European academic traditions, fine art is developed primarily for aesthetics or creative expression, distinguishing it from decorative art or applied art, which also has to serve some practical function, such as pottery or most metalwork ...

at Portsmouth College of Art and Design (now the

University of Portsmouth The University of Portsmouth is a public university in Portsmouth, England. It is one of only four universities in the South East England, South East of England rated as Gold in the Government's Teaching Excellence Framework. With approximately 28 ...

), graduating in 1982.Wilson, Andrew. ''Grayson Perry: General Artist'' He had an interest in film and exhibited his first piece of pottery at a

New Contemporaries New Contemporaries is an organisation in the UK that works to support emerging artists at the beginning of their careers by introducing them to the visual arts sector and to the public through a variety of platforms, including an annual exhibition ...

show at the

Institute of Contemporary Arts The Institute of Contemporary Arts (ICA) is an artistic and cultural centre on The Mall in London, just off Trafalgar Square. Located within Nash House, part of Carlton House Terrace, near the Duke of York Steps and Admiralty Arch, the ICA c ...

in London in 1980. In the months following his graduation he joined The Neo Naturists, a group started by Christine Binnie to revive the "true sixties spirit – which involves living one's life more or less naked and occasionally manifesting it into a performance for which the main theme is body paint". They put on events at galleries and other venues. In this time Perry was living in

squats Squat, squatter or squatting may refer to: Body position * Squatting position, a sitting position where one's knees are folded with heels touching one's buttocks or back of the thighs * Squat (exercise), a lower-body exercise in strength and co ...

in central London. When he left for

Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port and city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. The city of Portsmouth has been a unitary authority since 1 April 1997 and is administered by Portsmouth City Council. Portsmouth is the most dens ...

in 1979, his stepfather told him "Don't come back". Perry was estranged from his mother; when she died in 2016, he did not attend her funeral.

Modern day

As of 2010 he lives in north London with his wife, the author and psychotherapist

Philippa Perry Philippa, Lady Perry ( Fairclough; born 1957), is a British psychotherapist and author. She has written the graphic novel ''Couch Fiction: A Graphic Tale of Psychotherapy'' (2010), ''How to Stay Sane'' (2012), and ''The Book You Wish Your Parent ...

. They have one daughter,

Florence Florence ( ; it, Firenze ) is a city in Central Italy and the capital city of the Tuscany region. It is the most populated city in Tuscany, with 383,083 inhabitants in 2016, and over 1,520,000 in its metropolitan area.Bilancio demografico an ...

, born in 1992. In 2007 Perry curated an exhibition of art by prisoners and ex-offenders entitled ''Insider Art'' at the

presented by the

Koestler Trust Koestler Arts (formerly The Koestler Trust) is a charity which helps ex-offenders, secure patients and detainees in the UK to express themselves creatively. It promotes the arts in prisons, secure hospitals, immigration centres and in the commun ...

, a charity which promotes art as rehabilitation in prisons, young offenders institutions and secure psychiatric units. He described the art works as "raw and all the more powerful for that". In 2011 he returned to the annual Koestler Trust exhibition, this time held at London's

Southbank Centre Southbank Centre is a complex of artistic venues in London, England, on the South Bank of the River Thames (between Hungerford Bridge and Waterloo Bridge). It comprises three main performance venues (the Royal Festival Hall including the Nat ...

and judged the award winners in ''Art by Offenders'' with

Will Self William Woodard Self (born 26 September 1961) is an English author, journalist, political commentator and broadcaster. He has written 11 novels, five collections of shorter fiction, three novellas and nine collections of non-fiction writing. Sel ...

and

Emma Bridgewater Emma Bridgewater is a British ceramics manufacturing company founded in 1985 which is named after Emma Rice (''née'' Bridgewater). It is run by her and her husband Matthew Rice. Noted for their polka dot design among others, the company "Emma B ...

. In 2015 he was appointed to succeed

Kwame Kwei-Armah Kwame Kwei-Armah (born Ian Roberts; 24 March 1967 in Hillingdon, London) is a British actor, playwright, director, singer and broadcaster. He is best known for playing paramedic Finlay Newton in the BBC medical drama ''Casualty'' from 1999 unti ...

as chancellor of

University of the Arts London University of the Arts London is a collegiate university in London, England, specialising in arts, design, fashion and the performing arts. It is a federation of six arts colleges: Camberwell College of Arts, Central Saint Martins, Chelsea Coll ...

. Perry is a keen

mountain bike A mountain bike (MTB) or mountain bicycle is a bicycle designed for off-road cycling. Mountain bikes share some similarities with other bicycles, but incorporate features designed to enhance durability and performance in rough terrain, which ...

r and motorcyclist. Perry is a supporter of the Labour Party, and has designed works of art to raise funds for the party. In September 2015, Perry endorsed

Jeremy Corbyn Jeremy Bernard Corbyn (; born 26 May 1949) is a British politician who served as Leader of the Opposition and Leader of the Labour Party from 2015 to 2020. On the political left of the Labour Party, Corbyn describes himself as a socialist ...

campaign Campaign or The Campaign may refer to: Types of campaigns * Campaign, in agriculture, the period during which sugar beets are harvested and processed *Advertising campaign, a series of advertisement messages that share a single idea and theme * Bl ...

in the Labour Party leadership election. Perry said he would back Corbyn as he was "doing something interesting for the political debate." He added: "I think he's gold." In October 2016, he said that Jeremy Corbyn had "no chance of winning an election".

Cross-dressing

From an early age he liked to dress in stereotypically women's clothes and in his teens realised that he was a

transvestite Transvestism is the practice of dressing in a manner traditionally associated with the opposite sex. In some cultures, transvestism is practiced for religious, traditional, or ceremonial reasons. The term is considered outdated in Western ...

. At the age of 15 he moved in with his father's family in Chelmsford, where he began to go out dressed as a woman. When he was discovered by his father he said he would stop but his stepmother told everyone about it and a few months later threw him out. He returned to his mother and stepfather at

Great Bardfield Great Bardfield is a large village in the Braintree district of Essex, England. It is located approximately northwest of the town of Braintree, and approximately southeast of Saffron Walden. The village came to national attention during the ...

in Essex.

Perry frequently appears in public dressed as a woman, and he has described his female alter-ego, "Claire", variously as "a 19th century reforming matriarch, a middle-England protester for ''No More Art'', an aero-model-maker, or an Eastern European Freedom Fighter",''Grayson Perry: guerrilla tactics'', Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam, 2002 and "a fortysomething woman living in a Barratt home, the kind of woman who eats ready meals and can just about sew on a button". In his work Perry includes pictures of himself in stereotypically women's clothes: for example ''Mother of All Battles'' (1996) is a photograph of Claire holding a gun and wearing a dress, in ethnic eastern European style, embroidered with images of war, exhibited at his 2002 ''Guerrilla Tactics'' show. One critic has called Perry "The social critic from hell". Perry has designed many of Claire's outfits himself. Also, fashion students at

Central Saint Martins Central Saint Martins is a public tertiary art school in London, England. It is a constituent college of the University of the Arts London. It offers full-time courses at foundation, undergraduate and postgraduate levels, and a variety of shor ...

art college in London take part in an annual competition to design new dresses for Claire. An exhibition, ''Making Himself Claire: Grayson Perry's Dresses,'' was held at the

Walker Art Gallery The Walker Art Gallery is an art gallery in Liverpool, which houses one of the largest art collections in England outside London. It is part of the National Museums Liverpool group. History of the Gallery The Walker Art Gallery's collection ...

in Liverpool, from November 2017 to February 2018.

Work

As well as pottery, Perry has worked in printmaking, drawing, embroidery and other textile work, film and performance. He has written a

graphic novel A graphic novel is a long-form, fictional work of sequential art. The term ''graphic novel'' is often applied broadly, including fiction, non-fiction, and anthologized work, though this practice is highly contested by comic scholars and industry ...

, ''Cycle of Violence.''

Ceramics

The Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam mounted a solo exhibition of his work in 2002, ''Guerrilla Tactics.'' It was partly for this work that he was awarded the

in 2003, the first time it was given to a ceramic artist. Perry's work refers to several ceramic traditions, including

Greek pottery Ancient Greek pottery, due to its relative durability, comprises a large part of the archaeological record of ancient Greece, and since there is so much of it (over 100,000 painted vases are recorded in the Corpus vasorum antiquorum), it has exe ...

and

folk art Folk art covers all forms of visual art made in the context of folk culture. Definitions vary, but generally the objects have practical utility of some kind, rather than being exclusively decorative art, decorative. The makers of folk art a ...

. He has said, "I like the whole

iconography Iconography, as a branch of art history, studies the identification, description and interpretation of the content of images: the subjects depicted, the particular compositions and details used to do so, and other elements that are distinct fro ...

of pottery. It hasn't got any big pretensions to being great public works of art, and no matter how brash a statement I make, on a pot it will always have certain humility ... r me the shape has to be classical invisible: then you've got a base that people can understand". His vessels are made by coiling, a traditional method. Most have a complex surface employing many techniques, including "glazing, incision, embossing, and the use of photographic transfers", which requires several firings. To some he adds sprigs, little relief sculptures stuck to the surface. The high degree of skill required by his ceramics and their complexity distances them from craft pottery. It has been said that these methods are not used for decorative effect but to give meaning. Perry challenges the idea, implicit in the craft tradition, that pottery is merely decorative or utilitarian and cannot express ideas. In his work Perry reflects upon his upbringing as a boy, his stepfather's anger and the absence of proper guidance about male conduct. Perry's understanding of the roles in his family is portrayed in ''Using My Family'', from 1998, where a teddy bear provides affection, and the contemporaneous ''The Guardians'', which depicts his mother and stepfather. Much of Perry's work contains sexually explicit content. Some of his sexual imagery has been described as "obscene

sadomasochistic Sadomasochism ( ) is the giving and receiving of pleasure from acts involving the receipt or infliction of pain or humiliation. Practitioners of sadomasochism may seek sexual pleasure from their acts. While the terms sadist and masochist refer ...

sex scenes". He also has a reputation for depicting child abuse and yet there are no works depicting sexual child abuse although ''We've Found the Body of your Child'', 2000 hints at emotional

child abuse Child abuse (also called child endangerment or child maltreatment) is physical, sexual, and/or psychological maltreatment or neglect of a child or children, especially by a parent or a caregiver. Child abuse may include any act or failure to a ...

and child neglect. In other work he juxtaposes decorative clichés like flowers with weapons and war. Perry combines various techniques as a "guerrilla tactic", using the approachable medium of pottery to provoke thought.

Tapestries

Perry created the 15 m x 3 m ''The Walthamstow Tapestry'' in 2009. The large woven tapestry bears hundreds of brand names surrounding large figures in the stages of life from birth to death. Perry's 2012 TV documentary series '' All In The Best Possible Taste with Grayson Perry,'' about class "taste" variables, included him making large tapestries, called ''The Vanity of Small Differences.''Grayson Perry: The Vanity of Small Differences
",

British Council The British Council is a British organisation specialising in international cultural and educational opportunities. It works in over 100 countries: promoting a wider knowledge of the United Kingdom and the English language (and the Welsh lan ...

. Accessed 4 January 2018. Their format was inspired by

William Hogarth William Hogarth (; 10 November 1697 – 26 October 1764) was an English painter, engraver, pictorial satirist, social critic, editorial cartoonist and occasional writer on art. His work ranges from realistic portraiture to comic strip-like s ...

's ''

A Rake's Progress ''A Rake's Progress'' (or ''The Rake's Progress'') is a series of eight paintings by 18th-century English artist William Hogarth. The canvases were produced in 1732–1734, then engraved in 1734 and published in print form in 1735. The series ...

.'' Of the tapestries, Perry says,

''The Vanity of Small Differences'' consists of six tapestries that tell the story of Tim Rakewell. Some of the characters, incidents and objects I have included I encountered whilst filming ''All in the Best Possible Taste''. The tapestries tell a story of class mobility. I think nothing has such a strong influence on our aesthetic taste as the social class we grow up in.

The sketches were translated using

Adobe Photoshop Adobe Photoshop is a raster graphics editor developed and published by Adobe Inc. for Microsoft Windows, Windows and macOS. It was originally created in 1988 by Thomas Knoll, Thomas and John Knoll. Since then, the software has become the indu ...

to design the finished images and the tapestries were woven on a computer controlled

loom A loom is a device used to weave cloth and tapestry. The basic purpose of any loom is to hold the warp threads under tension to facilitate the interweaving of the weft threads. The precise shape of the loom and its mechanics may vary, but th ...

. Perry produced a pair of large-scale tapestries for A House for Essex, called ''The Essex House Tapestries: The Life of Julie Cope'' in 2015.

A House for Essex ("Julie's House") (2012–2015)

In 2015 the external work was completed on a holiday home in Wrabness, Essex, created by Perry working with

Fashion Architecture Taste Fashion Architecture Taste or FAT is an art and architecture collaborative first established in the 1990s in London, England. Their work falls broadly under the postmodern category with pop-culture influences.Pearman, Hugh (15 January 2006"Your ...

(FAT). Known as A House for Essex or Julie's House, it was built over the River Stour, as a commission for the charity

Living Architecture Living or The Living may refer to: Common meanings *Life, a condition that distinguishes organisms from inorganic objects and dead organisms ** Living species, one that is not extinct *Personal life, the course of an individual human's life * H ...

. The house encapsulates the story of Julie May Cope, a fictional Essex woman, "Born in a flood-struck Canvey Island in 1953 and mown down last year by a curry delivery driver in Colchester". Writing in ''

'', Ellis Woodman said, "Sporting a livery of green and white ceramic tiles, telephone-box red joinery and a gold roof, it is not easy to miss. ... Decoration is everywhere: from the external tiles embossed with motifs referencing Julie's rock-chick youth to extravagant tapestries recording her life's full narrative. Perry has contributed ceramic sculptures, modelled on Irish Sheelanagigs, which celebrate her as a kind of latter-day earth mother while the delivery driver's moped has even been repurposed as a chandelier suspended above the double-height living room." Perry made a variety of artwork used inside the house, depicting Julie Cope's life. He made a series of large-scale tapestries, ''The Essex House Tapestries: The Life of Julie Cope,'' which include "A Perfect Match" (2015) and "In Its Familiarity, Golden" (2015), and for the bedrooms, "Julie and Rob" (2013) and "Julie and Dave" (2015). He also wrote an essay, "The Ballad of Julie Cope" (2015) and created a series of black and white woodcuts, ''Six Snapshots of Julie'' (2015).Mark Edwards
Tapestry of Essex Everywoman’s life caught at Grayson Perry’s Firstsite show
,

Ipswich Star The ''Ipswich Star'' (formerly ''Evening Star'') is a daily evening local newspaper based in Ipswich, UK published by Archant. The newspaper started publication on 17 February 1885 and is published Monday to Friday. History The newspaper was k ...

, 12 December 2017. Accessed 9 January 2018 The work was shown in an exhibition, ''Grayson Perry: The Life of Julie Cope,'' at

Firstsite Firstsite is a visual arts organisation based in Colchester, Essex, which opened in 2011. It was the national Art Fund's Museum of the Year in 2021. The building Firstsite occupy as tenants was designed by Rafael Viñoly and the freehold is r ...

in Colchester, Essex, from January to February 2018.

Media

Television

In 2005, Perry presented a

Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned enterprise, state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a four ...

documentary, ''Why Men Wear Frocks,'' in which he examined transvestism and masculinity at the start of the 21st century. Perry talked about his own life as a transvestite and the effect it had on him and his family, frankly discussing its difficulties and pleasures. The documentary won a

Royal Television Society The Royal Television Society (RTS) is a British-based educational charity for the discussion, and analysis of television in all its forms, past, present, and future. It is the oldest television society in the world. It currently has fourteen r ...

award for best network production.Royal Television Society Regional Centres' Awards 2005
,

. Accessed 13 December 2017. He was the subject of a ''

The South Bank Show ''The South Bank Show'' is a British television arts magazine series originally produced by London Weekend Television and broadcast on ITV between 1978 and 2010. A new version of the series began 27 May 2012 on Sky Arts. Conceived, written, ...

'' episode in 2006 and the subject of an ''

Imagine Imagine may refer to: * Imagination Music Albums * ''Imagine'' (Armin van Buuren album), 2008 * ''Imagine'' (Eva Cassidy album), 2002 * ''Imagine'' (Janice Vidal album), 2012 * ''Imagine'' (John Lennon album), 1971 ** ''Imagine: John Lennon' ...

'' documentary broadcast in November 2011. His three-part series for Channel 4, '' All In The Best Possible Taste with Grayson Perry,'' was broadcast in June 2012. The series analysed the ideas of

taste The gustatory system or sense of taste is the sensory system that is partially responsible for the perception of taste (flavor). Taste is the perception produced or stimulated when a substance in the mouth reacts chemically with taste receptor ...

held by the different social classes of the UK. Perry explores both male and female culture in each social class and what they buy, in three parts: "Working Class Taste," "Middle Class Taste," and "Upper Class Taste." At the same time, he photographs, then illustrates his experiences and the people, transcribing them into large tapestries, entitled ''The Vanity of Small Differences.'' In 2014, Perry presented a three-part documentary series for Channel 4, ''Who Are You?,'' on identity. In it he creates diverse portraits for the

National Portrait Gallery, London The National Portrait Gallery (NPG) is an art gallery in London housing a collection of portraits of historically important and famous British people. It was arguably the first national public gallery dedicated to portraits in the world when it ...

, of ex-MP Chris Huhne,

Rylan Clark-Neal Ross Richard Clark (born 25 October 1988), known professionally as Rylan, is an English broadcaster and model. He finished in fifth place on the ninth series of '' The X Factor'' in 2012, and the following year, he won the eleventh series of ...

from ''

The X Factor ''The X Factor'' is a television music competition franchise created by British producer Simon Cowell and his company Syco Entertainment. It originated in the United Kingdom, where it was devised as a replacement for ''Pop Idol'' (2001–2003 ...

,'' a Muslim convert and a young

transgender A transgender (often abbreviated as trans) person is someone whose gender identity or gender expression does not correspond with their sex assigned at birth. Many transgender people experience dysphoria, which they seek to alleviate through tr ...

man. In 2016, he presented a series exploring

masculinity Masculinity (also called manhood or manliness) is a set of attributes, behaviors, and roles associated with men and boys. Masculinity can be theoretically understood as socially constructed, and there is also evidence that some behaviors con ...

for Channel 4, '' Grayson Perry: All Man.'' In 2018, Perry explored ''Rites of Passage'' in a four-part documentary series on Channel 4. The documentary series focused on death, marriage, birth, and coming of age as Perry compared the way people in the UK dealt with these themes compared to others around the world. Each episode culminated in Perry helping those in the UK to create ceremonies that were appropriate to their own situations. During the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

, Perry presented ''

Grayson's Art Club ''Grayson's Art Club'' is a Channel 4 television documentary series hosted by artist Grayson Perry and his wife, psychotherapist Philippa Perry and first broadcast during the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic. The first series was broadcast ...

'' from his home studio alongside his wife Philippa, encouraging viewers to produce and share their own artworks from lockdown. Along with pieces submitted by practising artists and celebrity guests, the public's work went on display at an exhibition in Manchester, however, this did not go ahead due to COVID-19 restrictions. The programme's second series began in February 2021. In 2020 Channel 4 broadcast the series ''Grayson Perry's Big American Road Trip''. Perry crossed the US on a motorbike, exploring its biggest fault lines, from race to class and identity. As America headed for a presidential election, Perry asked how its growing divisions could be overcome. Other television and radio appearances also include the BBC's ''

Question Time A question time in a parliament occurs when members of the parliament ask questions of government ministers (including the prime minister), which they are obliged to answer. It usually occurs daily while parliament is sitting, though it can be ca ...

'', ''

HARDTalk ''HARDtalk'' is a BBC television and radio programme broadcast on the BBC News Channel, on BBC World News, and on the BBC World Service. Broadcast times and days vary, depending on broadcasting platform and geographic location. ''HARDtalk' ...

'', ''

Desert Island Discs ''Desert Island Discs'' is a radio programme broadcast on BBC Radio 4. It was first broadcast on the BBC Forces Programme on 29 January 1942. Each week a guest, called a " castaway" during the programme, is asked to choose eight recordings (usu ...

'', '' Have I Got News for You'' and '' QI.''

Writing and lectures

Perry was an arts correspondent for ''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper ''The Sunday Times'' (fou ...

,'' writing a weekly column until October 2007. Perry gave the 2013 BBC

. In a series of talks titled Playing to the Gallery, he considered the state of art in the 21st century. The individual lectures, titled "Democracy Has Bad Taste", "Beating the Bounds", "Nice Rebellion, Welcome In!" and "I Found Myself in the Art World", were broadcast in October and November 2013 on

BBC Radio 4 BBC Radio 4 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC that replaced the BBC Home Service in 1967. It broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history from the BBC' ...

and the

BBC World Service The BBC World Service is an international broadcasting, international broadcaster owned and operated by the BBC, with funding from the Government of the United Kingdom, British Government through the Foreign Secretary, Foreign Secretary's o ...

. He expanded the lectures into a book, ''Playing to the Gallery: Helping Contemporary Art in its Struggle to Be Understood'' (2014). He guest edited an issue of ''

New Statesman The ''New Statesman'' is a British political and cultural magazine published in London. Founded as a weekly review of politics and literature on 12 April 1913, it was at first connected with Sidney and Beatrice Webb and other leading members ...

'' in 2014, entitled "The Great White Male Issue". In 2017 Perry gave the inaugural Orwell Lecture in the North for The Orwell Foundation, entitled "I've read all the academic texts on empathy".

Exhibitions

The-Tomb-of-the-Unknown-Craftsman Grayson Perry

Solo exhibitions

*''Guerrilla Tactics,'' Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam, Amsterdam, 2002; Barbican Art Gallery,

, London, September–November 2002.Turner at 20
,

, 1 December 2003. Accessed 20 December 2017. *

, Pittsburgh, PA, 2006 * 21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art, Kanazawa, Kanazawa, Japan, 2007 *''The Walthamstow Tapestry,''

Victoria Miro Gallery The Victoria Miro Gallery is a British contemporary art gallery in London, run by Victoria Miro.Husband, Stuart"Go see... the Victoria Miro gallery ''The Observer'', 3 December 2000. Retrieved 22 April 2008. Miro opened her first gallery in 1985 ...

II, London, 2009. A 15 m x 3 m tapestry. *''The Tomb of the Unknown Craftsman,''

, London, October 2011 – February 2012. Artefacts from the museum's collection selected by Perry and 25 new works by him. *''The Vanity of Small Differences,''

Sunderland Museum and Winter Gardens Sunderland Museum and Winter Gardens is a municipal museum in Sunderland, England. It contains the only known British example of a gliding reptile, the oldest known vertebrate capable of gliding flight. The exhibit was discovered in Eppleton qua ...

, Sunderland, UK, June–September 2013; Manchester City Art Gallery, Manchester, UK, October 2013 – January 2014;

Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery (BM&AG) is a museum and art gallery in Birmingham, England. It has a collection of international importance covering fine art, ceramics, metalwork, jewellery, natural history, archaeology, ethnography, local ...

, UK, Birmingham, February–May 2014;

, Liverpool, UK, May–July 2014;

Leeds City Art Gallery Leeds Art Gallery in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England, is a gallery, part of the Leeds Museums & Galleries group, whose collection of 20th-century British Art was designated by the British government in 1997 as a collection "of national importance ...

, Leeds, UK, August–October 2014;

Pera Museum Pera Museum ( Turkish: ''Pera Müzesi'') is an art museum in the Tepebaşı quarter of the Beyoğlu (Pera) district in Istanbul, Turkey, at Meşrutiyet Avenue No. 65 (adjacent to İstiklal Avenue and in close proximity to Taksim Square.) It has ...

, Istanbul, Turkey, May–July 2015;

Cer Modern Cer, or CER may refer to: Environment * Certified Emission Reduction, emission units Statistics * Control event rate, a statistical value in epidemiology * Crossover error rate, a statistical value in a biometric system Information Technology ...

, Ankara, Turkey, September–November 2015;

Victoria Art Gallery The Victoria Art Gallery is a public art museum in Bath, Somerset, England. It was opened in 1900 to commemorate Queen Victoria's diamond jubilee. It is a Grade II* listed building and houses over 1,500 objects of art including a collection of ...

, Bath, UK, January–April 2016; Herbert Art Gallery, Coventry, UK, April–July 2016; Croome, Worcester, UK, July–September 2016;

The Beaney The Beaney House of Art and Knowledge is the central museum, library and art gallery of the city of Canterbury, Kent, England. It is housed in a Grade II listed building. Until it closed for refurbishment in 2009, it was known as the ''Beaney In ...

, Canterbury, UK, October–December 2016; Izolyatsia Platform for Cultural Initiatives, Kyiv, Ukraine, February–March 2017; Museum of Contemporary Art Vojvodina, Novi Sad, Serbia, April–May 2017; National Gallery, Pristina, Kosovo, June–June 2017; Art Gallery of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Sarajevo, Bosnia, July–August 2017; Museum of Contemporary Art of Republic of Srpska, Banja Luka, Bosnia, September–October 2017; National Gallery, Tirana, Albania, November–December 2017. 6 large-scale tapestries, 8 prints and 3 films (''All in the Best Possible Taste with Grayson Perry'') "which explore the British fascination with taste and class." *''Provincial Punk,''

Turner Contemporary Turner Contemporary is one of the UK’s leading contemporary art galleries. Celebrating Margate’s connection with the painter J.M.W. Turner (1775 – 1851), an artist who believed that art could be an agent of change, its year-round exhibition ...

, Margate, May–September 2015. A survey exhibition, with ceramics, prints, tapestries and short films. *''Julie Cope's Grand Tour: The Story of a Life by Grayson Perry,'' a

UK touring exhibition:Julie Cope’s Grand Tour: The Story of a Life by Grayson Perry: A Crafts Council Touring Exhibition
,

. Accessed 6 January 2017.

Banbury Museum Banbury Museum & Gallery is a local museum in the town of Banbury, north Oxfordshire, England. The museum is located in the centre of Banbury by the Oxford Canal. Its displays present the history of the town. They include the English Civil W ...

, Banbury, March–May 2017; New Brewery Arts, Cirencester, May–July 2017. A pair of large-scale tapestries (''The Essex House Tapestries: The Life of Julie Cope'') made for A House for Essex, and audio recording of Perry's essay "The Ballad of Julie Cope" (2015). *''Grayson Perry: The Most Popular Art Exhibition Ever!,'' Serpentine Gallery, London, June–September 2017;Serpentine Gallery 8 Jun 2017 to 10 Sep 2017: Grayson Perry: The Most Popular Art Exhibition Ever!
,

Serpentine Galleries The Serpentine Galleries are two contemporary art galleries in Kensington Gardens, Hyde Park, Central London. Recently rebranded to just Serpentine, the organisation is split across Serpentine South, previously known as the Serpentine Gallery, ...

. Accessed 4 January 2018.

, Bristol, UK, September–December 2017.Grayson Perry: The Most Popular Art Exhibition Ever!
",

. Accessed 4 January 2018. Included "Leave" and "Remain" pots as well as work inspired by his ''All Man'' TV series. *''Grayson Perry: The Pre-Therapy Years'', The

Holburne Museum The Holburne Museum (formerly known as the Holburne of Menstrie Museum and the Holburne Museum of Art) is located in Sydney Pleasure Gardens, Bath, Somerset, England. The city's first public art gallery, the Grade I listed building, is home to ...

, Bath, UK, 24 January–25 May 2020; This was the first exhibition to survey Perry’s earliest forays into the art world, reintroducing the creative works he made between 1982 and 1994. The show was also unusual for the fact that many of the 70 items on display had been crowd-sourced from across the UK, following an appeal to the public in 2018. This exhibition was subsequently shown at the

York Art Gallery York Art Gallery is a public art gallery in York, England, with a collection of paintings from 14th-century to contemporary, prints, watercolours, drawings, and ceramics. It closed for major redevelopment in 2013, reopening in summer of 2015. T ...

and opened on 28 May 2021 following the closure of the gallery due to the

COVID-19 Pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

Group exhibitions

, London, 1980. *''New Labour,''

Saatchi Gallery The Saatchi Gallery is a London gallery for contemporary art and an independent charity opened by Charles Saatchi in 1985. Exhibitions which drew upon the collection of Charles Saatchi, starting with US artists and minimalism, moving to the D ...

, 2001. *6 tapestries in the

Royal Academy Summer Exhibition The Summer Exhibition is an open art exhibition held annually by the Royal Academy in Burlington House, Piccadilly in central London, England, during the months of June, July, and August. The exhibition includes paintings, prints, drawings, s ...

Royal Academy of Arts The Royal Academy of Arts (RA) is an art institution based in Burlington House on Piccadilly in London. Founded in 1768, it has a unique position as an independent, privately funded institution led by eminent artists and architects. Its purpo ...

, London, 2013. *''Progress,''

Foundling Museum The Foundling Museum in Brunswick Square, London tells the story of the Foundling Hospital, Britain's first home for children at risk of abandonment. The museum houses the nationally important Foundling Hospital Collection as well as the Gerald ...

, London, June–September 2014. Included Perry's ''The Vanity of Small Differences'' tapestry series shown with

David Hockney David Hockney (born 9 July 1937) is an English painter, draftsman, printmaker, stage designer, and photographer. As an important contributor to the pop art movement of the 1960s, he is considered one of the most influential British artists o ...

's ''A Rake's Progress,''

Yinka Shonibare Yinka Shonibare (born 9 August 1962), is a British-Nigerian artist living in the United Kingdom. His work explores cultural identity, colonialism and post-colonialism within the contemporary context of globalisation. A hallmark of his art is t ...

's ''Diary of a Victorian Dandy,'' work from Jessie Brennan and

's ''

.''Progress
,

To mark the 250th anniversary of Hogarth's death.

Bibliography

Publications by Perry

*''Grayson Perry: Portrait of the Artist as a Young Girl.'' New York City:

Vintage Vintage, in winemaking, is the process of picking grapes and creating the finished product—wine (see Harvest (wine)). A vintage wine is one made from grapes that were all, or primarily, grown and harvested in a single specified year. In certa ...

, 2007. An autobiography by Perry and Wendy Jones, constructed from taped interviews. . *''Cycle of Violence.'' Atlas, 2012. . A graphic novel. *''Playing to the Gallery: Helping Contemporary Art in its Struggle to Be Understood.''

Particular In metaphysics, particulars or individuals are usually contrasted with universals. Universals concern features that can be exemplified by various different particulars. Particulars are often seen as concrete, spatiotemporal entities as opposed to a ...

, 2014. London:

Penguin Penguins (order (biology), order List of Sphenisciformes by population, Sphenisciformes , family (biology), family Spheniscidae ) are a group of Water bird, aquatic flightless birds. They live almost exclusively in the Southern Hemisphere: on ...

, 2016; . Based on his BBC Radio 4

. Text with some illustration. *''The Descent of Man.'' London:

Allen Lane Sir Allen Lane (born Allen Lane Williams; 21 September 1902 – 7 July 1970) was a British publisher who together with his brothers Richard and John Lane founded Penguin Books in 1935, bringing high-quality paperback fiction and non-fictio ...

, 2016. . A discussion of modern masculinity with autobiographical elements. *''Sketchbooks.'' London: Penguin, 2016. . Illustrations of Perry's sketches.

Publication edited by Perry

*''Unpopular Culture: Grayson Perry Selects from the Arts Council Collection.'' London: Hayward, 2008. . Postwar British paintings, sculpture and photography selected from the

Arts Council Collection The arts are a very wide range of human practices of creative expression, storytelling and cultural participation. They encompass multiple diverse and plural modes of thinking, doing and being, in an extremely broad range of media. Both hi ...

Catalogues of Perry's work

*''Guerilla Tactics.'' Rotterdam: NAi Uitgevers; Amsterdam: Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam, 2002. . Illustrations of Perry's work with essays by Marjan Boot,

Louisa Buck Louisa Buck is a British art critic and contemporary art correspondent for ''The Art Newspaper''. She was a jurist for the 2005 Turner Prize. She is also an author or co-author of books on contemporary art market. Early life and family background ...

, and Andrew Wilson, and a preface by

Rudi Fuchs Rudolf Herman "Rudi" Fuchs (born 28 April 1942) is a Dutch art historian and curator. Personal life Rudolf Herman Fuchs was born on 28 April 1942 in Eindhoven in the Netherlands. He studied art history from 1967 to 1975 at Leiden University, aft ...

. *''The Charms of Lincolnshire: 4 February–7 May 2006.'' Lincoln, UK: The Collection, 2006. . *''Grayson Perry.'' London:

Thames & Hudson Thames & Hudson (sometimes T&H for brevity) is a publisher of illustrated books in all visually creative categories: art, architecture, design, photography, fashion, film, and the performing arts. It also publishes books on archaeology, history, ...

, 2010. . Edited and with texts by Jacky Klein, and illustrations of about 150 of Perry's works with extensive quoted commentaries by him. **Updated and expanded edition. London: Thames & Hudson, 2013. Reprinted, 2016; . With illustrations of 175 of Perry's works. *''The Tomb of the Unknown Craftsman.''

, 2011. . Published to accompany an exhibition at the British Museum. Illustrations of works by Perry as well as of objects selected by him from the Museum, and an introduction by Perry. *''The Vanity of Small Differences.'' London: Hayward, 2013. . Illustrations of six tapestries by Perry, each with commentary. With essays by

Suzanne Moore Suzanne Lynn Moore (born 17 July 1958) is an English journalist. Early life and education Moore is the daughter of an American father and a working-class British mother, who split up during her childhood. As a child, she was told that her mo ...

and Perry. *''Grayson Perry: My Pretty Little Art Career.'' Sydney:

Museum of Contemporary Art Australia The Museum of Contemporary Art Australia (MCA), located on George Street in Sydney's The Rocks neighbourhood, is solely dedicated to exhibiting, interpreting, and collecting contemporary art, from across Australia and around the world. It is ...

, 2016. Published to accompany a retrospective exhibition. *''The Most Popular Art Exhibition Ever!.'' London: Penguin, 2017. . Published to accompany an exhibition. Illustrations of recent work by Perry, with commentary on each and an introduction by him. *''Julie Cope's Grand Tour: The Story of a Life by Grayson Perry: a Crafts Council Touring Exhibition.'' London:

, 2017. . Illustrations of tapestries. With a foreword by Annie Warburton, an introduction by Annabelle Campbell, and essays by Joe Hill, Justine Boussard, and Angela McShane. Published to accompany an exhibition.

Postcards

*''Playing to the Gallery Postcards: Thirty-six Postcards About Art.'' London: Particular Books, 2015. . *''Vanities Notecard Set of 6.'' Details from the tapestries "The Vanity of Small Differences: Expulsion from Number 8 Eden Close, 2012" and "The Annunciation of the Virgin Deal, 2012." London:

. *''Art Quality Gauge and Gift Shop Notecard Set of 6.'' London: Royal Academy of Arts. *''The Vanity of Small Differences.'' London:

, 2015. .

Interviews

Television programmes and DVDs

*''Why Men Wear Frocks'' (2005) – produced by

Twofour Twofour is a British television and digital media group founded in 1989 by Charles Wace, a former BBC news producer, and Christopher Slade, a BBC presenter. With its headquarters in Plymouth, Twofour has offices in London and Los Angeles. In J ...

for

, directed by Neil Crombie. Also on DVD. *''

'' (2006) – episode 678, season 31. Documentary exploring the life and works of Perry, directed by Robert Bee. *''Grayson Perry and the Tomb of the Unknown Craftsman'' (2011) – 8 episodes broadcast on

BBC One BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's flagship network and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News television bulletins, p ...

, directed by Neil Crombie and produced by

Alan Yentob Alan Yentob (born 11 March 1947) is a BBC presenter and retired British television executive. He stepped down as Creative Director in December 2015, and was chairman of the board of trustees of the charity Kids Company from 2003 until its colla ...

for ''

.'' Follows Perry for more than two years as he prepares for an exhibition at the British Museum, selecting artefacts from the museum's collection and producing new work.Grayson Perry and the Tomb of the Unknown Craftsman
,

. Accessed 20 December 2017. Also on DVD. *''Spare Time'' – produced by Seneca Productions for

More4 More4 is a British free-to-air television channel, owned by Channel Four Television Corporation. The channel launched on 10 October 2005. Its programming mainly focuses on lifestyle and documentaries, as well as foreign dramas. Content When ...

, directed by Neil Crombie. About British peoples' hobbies. Also on DVD. *'' All In The Best Possible Taste with Grayson Perry'' (2012) – three-part series produced by Channel 4, directed by Neil Crombie. About British peoples' taste. Perry is shown working on his series of tapestries ''The Vanity of Small Differences.'' Also on DVD. *''Who Are You?'' (2014) – three-part documentary series for Channel 4, directed by Neil Crombie. *''Grayson Perry's Dream House'' (2015) – for Channel 4, directed by Neil Crombie. On A House for Essex ("Julie's House"). *''Born Risky: Grayson Perry'' (2016) – four-part series for Channel 4, directed by Keith McCarthy. *'' Grayson Perry: All Man'' (2016) – three-part series for Channel 4: 2 episodes directed by Neil Crombie, 1 episode directed by Crombie and Arthur Cary. *''Grayson Perry: Divided Britain'' (2017) – for Channel 4, directed by Neil Crombie. Perry "calls on a public divided by

Brexit Brexit (; a portmanteau of "British exit") was the withdrawal of the United Kingdom (UK) from the European Union (EU) at 23:00 GMT on 31 January 2020 (00:00 1 February 2020 CET).The UK also left the European Atomic Energy Community (EAEC or ...

to inspire his pots for Leave and Remain". *'' Grayson Perry: Rites of Passage'' (2018) for Channel 4. *''

'' (2020) Commissioning Editor: Shaminder Nahal Production Company: Swan Films (for Channel 4) Executive Producers: Neil Crombie and Joe Evans.(6 × 1 hour episodes). *''Grayson Perry: This England'' (w/t) (TBA) for Channel 4.

Films made by Perry

*''Bungalow Depression'' (1981) – 3 mins, Standard 8 mm film *''The Green Witch and Merry Diana'' (1984) – 20 mins,

Super 8 film Super 8 mm film is a motion-picture film format released in 1965 by Eastman Kodak as an improvement over the older "Double" or "Regular" 8 mm home movie format. The film is nominally 8 mm wide, the same as older formatted ...

*''The Poor Girl'' (1985) – 47 mins, Super 8 film

Awards

*2003:

*2005:

award for best network production for ''Why Men Wear Frocks'' (2005) *2012: Visual Arts award, South Bank Sky Arts Awards, for ''The Tomb of the Unknown Craftsman'' at the British Museum. *2013: Appointed

Commander of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

(CBE) in the

2013 Birthday Honours The 2013 Birthday Honours were appointments by some of the 16 Commonwealth realms of Queen Elizabeth II to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries. The Birthday Honours are awarded as part of ...

for services to contemporary art. *2018: Awarded City Lit fellowship as part of the Mental Wealth Festival * 2021:

Erasmus Prize The Erasmus Prize is an annual prize awarded by the board of the Praemium Erasmianum Foundation to individuals or institutions that have made exceptional contributions to culture, society, or social science in Europe and the rest of the world. I ...

: "The theme of the Erasmus Prize this year (sc. 2020) is ´The power of the image in the digital era’. At a time when we are constantly bombarded with images, Perry has developed a unique visual language, demonstrating that art belongs to everybody and should not be an elitist affair. Perry receives the prize for the insightful way he tackles questions of beauty and craftsmanship while addressing wider social and cultural issues.

Collections

*British Council Collection and the

: ''The Vanity of Small Differences'' series of tapestries *

, London: ''Mad Kid's Bedroom Wall Pot (1996)''Mad Kid's Bedroom Wall Pot (P442)
,

. Accessed 6 January 2017. and two tapestries from ''The Essex House Tapestries: The Life of Julie Cope'' (2015) ("A Perfect Match" (2015) and "In Its Familiarity, Golden" (2015)) *

Graves Art Gallery Graves Art Gallery is an art gallery in Sheffield, England. The gallery is located above the Central Library in Sheffield city centre. It houses permanent displays from the city’s historic and contemporary collection of British and European ar ...

, Sheffield, UK: Comfort Blanket tapestry *Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam, AmsterdamTurner Prize Winner Grayson Perry
, Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam. Accessed 20 December 2017. *

, LondonGrayson Perry: born 1960
,

. Accessed 21 December 2017. *

, LondonYour Search Results
,

. Accessed 7 January 2018. * Swindon Museum and Art Gallery

References

External links

* *
Profile on Royal Academy of Arts CollectionsImages and Essay on the ''Walthamstow Tapestry''"Exquisite Corpse"Brilliant Ideas: Artist Grayson Perry
Bloomberg, 2015 (video)
"Grayson Perry's Tomb of the Unknown Craftsman - in pictures"
at ''The Guardian''
Perry's BBC Reith Lectures, ''Playing to the Gallery'' – episode 1 of 4, "Democracy Has Bad Taste"
at the BBC (audio)
A House For Essex"
{{DEFAULTSORT:Perry, Grayson 1960 births Living people Alumni of the University of Portsmouth Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Male-to-female cross-dressers English ceramicists English potters People educated at King Edward VI Grammar School, Chelmsford People associated with the University of the Arts London People from Chelmsford Turner Prize winners Labour Party (UK) people English contemporary artists Royal Academicians 21st-century ceramists Squatters