Stuckism () is an international

art movement An art movement is a tendency or style in art with a specific common philosophy or goal, followed by a group of artists during a specific period of time, (usually a few months, years or decades) or, at least, with the heyday of the movement defi ...

founded in 1999 by Billy Childish and

Charles Thomson Charles Thomson (November 29, 1729 – August 16, 1824) was an Irish-born Patriot leader in Philadelphia during the American Revolution and the secretary of the Continental Congress (1774–1789) throughout its existence. As secretary, Thomson ...

to promote

figurative painting Figurative art, sometimes written as figurativism, describes artwork (particularly paintings and sculptures) that is clearly derived from real object sources and so is, by definition, representational. The term is often in contrast to abstract ...

as opposed to

conceptual art Conceptual art, also referred to as conceptualism, is art in which the concept(s) or idea(s) involved in the work take precedence over traditional aesthetic, technical, and material concerns. Some works of conceptual art, sometimes called insta ...

."Glossary: Stuckism"
''

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 ...

''. Retrieved 16 September 2009. By May 2017 the initial group of 13 British artists had expanded to 236 groups in 52 countries."Stuckism International"
stuckism.com. Retrieved 22 May 2017. Childish and Thomson have issued several manifestos. The first one was ''The Stuckists'', consisting of 20 points starting with "Stuckism is a quest for authenticity".The Stuckists manifesto
stuckism.com. Retrieved 17 November 2011. ''

Remodernism Remodernism revives aspects of modernism, particularly in its early form, and follows postmodernism, to which it contrasts. Adherents of remodernism advocate it as a forward and radical, not reactionary, impetus. In 2000, Billy Childish and Charl ...

'', the other well-known manifesto of the movement, is a

criticism of postmodernism Criticism of postmodernism is intellectually diverse, reflecting various critical attitudes toward postmodernity, postmodern philosophy, postmodern art, and postmodern architecture. Postmodernism is generally defined by an attitude of skepticism ...

; it aims to get back to the true spirit of

modernism Modernism is both a philosophy, philosophical and arts movement that arose from broad transformations in Western world, Western society during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The movement reflected a desire for the creation of new fo ...

, to produce art with spiritual value regardless of style, subject matter or medium. In another manifesto they define themselves as ''anti-anti-art'' which is against

anti-art Anti-art is a loosely used term applied to an array of concepts and attitudes that reject prior definitions of art and question art in general. Somewhat paradoxically, anti-art tends to conduct this questioning and rejection from the vantage poi ...

and for art. After exhibiting in small galleries in Shoreditch, London, the Stuckists' first show in a major public museum was held in 2004 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 ...

, as part of the

Liverpool Biennial Liverpool Biennial is the largest international contemporary art festival in the United Kingdom. Every two years, the city of Liverpool hosts an extensive range of artworks, projects, and a programme of events. The biennial commissions leading ...

. The group has demonstrated annually at

Tate Britain Tate Britain, known from 1897 to 1932 as the National Gallery of British Art and from 1932 to 2000 as the Tate Gallery, is an art museum on Millbank in the City of Westminster in London, England. It is part of the Tate network of galleries in ...

against 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) ...

since 2000, sometimes dressed in clown costumes. They have also come out in opposition to the Charles Saatchi-patronised

Young British Artists The Young British Artists, or YBAs—also referred to as Brit artists and Britart—is a loose group of visual artists who first began to exhibit together in London in 1988. Many of the YBA artists graduated from the BA Fine Art course at Goldsm ...

. Although painting is the dominant artistic form of Stuckism, artists using other media such as photography, sculpture, film and collage have also joined, and share the Stuckist opposition to conceptualism and "ego-art.""Stuckism International: The Stuckist Decade 1999–2009", Robert Janás
Victoria Press
, 2009, a: p.73 - b: p.64, .

Name, founding and origin

The name "Stuckism" was coined in January 1999 by

in response to a poem read to him several times by Billy Childish. In it, Childish recites that his former girlfriend,

Tracey Emin Tracey Karima Emin, CBE, RA (; born 3 July 1963) is a British artist known for her autobiographical and confessional artwork. Emin produces work in a variety of media including drawing, painting, sculpture, film, photography, neon text and ...

had said he was "stuck! stuck! stuck!" with his art, poetry and music. Thomson, Charles (August 2004), "A Stuckist on Stuckism: Stella Vine", from: Ed. Frank Milner (2004), ''The Stuckists Punk Victorian'', pp. 7–9,

National Museums Liverpool National Museums Liverpool, formerly National Museums and Galleries on Merseyside, comprises several museums and art galleries in and around Liverpool, England. All the museums and galleries in the group have free admission. The museum is a non ...

, . Available online a
"The Two Starts of Stuckism"
an

on stuckism.com. Later that month, Thomson approached Childish with a view to co-founding an art group called Stuckism, which Childish agreed to, on the basis that Thomson would do the work for the group, as Childish already had a full schedule. There were eleven other founding members:

Philip Absolon Philip Absolon (born 24 November 1960) is a British artist and a founder member of the Stuckists art group,Milner, Frank, ed. ''The Stuckists Punk Victorian'', p. 50, National Museums Liverpool 2004, . Pages 6–30, Charles Thomson's essay, "A ...

, Frances Castle, Sheila Clark, Eamon Everall,

Ella Guru Ella Guru (born May 24, 1966) is an American painter and musician living in Hastings, East Sussex, England. She was a member of Mambo Taxi and the Voodoo Queens. In 1999, she became one of the founding members of the Stuckist art movement. E ...

Wolf Howard Wolf Howard (born 7 April 1968)Evans, p.36. is an English artist, poet and filmmaker living in Rochester, Kent and was a founder member of the Stuckists art group.Milner, p.80. He is also a drummer who has played in garage and punk bands, cu ...

Bill Lewis William Lewis (born 1 August 1953) is an English artist, story-teller, poet and mythographer.Milner, Frank, ed. ''The Stuckists Punk Victorian'', p. 86, National Museums Liverpool 2004, . Pages 6–30, Charles Thomson's essay, "A Stuckist on ...

, Sanchia Lewis,

Joe Machine Joe Machine (born Joseph Stokes,Buckman, David (2006), ''Dictionary of Artists in Britain since 1945'', p. 1018, Art Dictionaries, Bristol, 2006, 6 April 1973) is an English artist, poet and writer. He is a founding member of the Stuckists art ...

Sexton Ming Sexton Ming (born 1961) is a British artist, poet and musician who was a founding member of The Medway Poets (1979) and Stuckism art movement (1999). Life and career Ming was born in Gravesend, Kent, England. In 1979 he was one of the founder me ...

, and Charles Williams. The membership has evolved since its founding through creative collaborations: the group was originally promoted as working in paint, but members have since worked in various other media, including poetry, fiction, performance, photography, film and music. In 1979, Thomson, Childish, Bill Lewis and Ming were members of

The Medway Poets The Medway Poets were founded in Medway, Kent, in 1979. They were an English punk based poetry performance group and later formed the core of the first Stuckists Art Group. The members were Miriam Carney, Billy Childish, Robert Earl, Bill Lewis ...

performance group, to which Absolon and Sanchia Lewis had earlier contributed. Peter Waite's Rochester Pottery staged a series of solo painting shows. In 1982, TVS broadcast a documentary on the poets. That year, Emin, then a fashion student, and Childish started a relationship; her writing was edited by Bill Lewis, printed by Thomson and published by Childish. Group members published dozens of works. The poetry group dispersed after two years, reconvening in 1987 to record ''The Medway Poets'' LP. Clark, Howard and Machine became involved over the following years. Thomson got to know Williams, who was a local art student and whose girlfriend was a friend of Emin; Thomson also met Everall. During the foundation of the group, Ming brought in his girlfriend, Guru, who in turn invited Castle.

Manifestos

In August 1999, Childish and Thomson wrote ''The Stuckists manifesto'' which stress the value of painting as a medium, its use for communication, and the expression of emotion and experience – as opposed to what Stuckists see as the superficial novelty, nihilism and irony of conceptual art and postmodernism. The most contentious statement in the manifesto is: "Artists who don't paint aren't artists". The second and third manifestos, ''An Open Letter to Sir Nicholas Serota'' and ''

'' respectively, were sent to the director of the

Nicholas Serota Sir Nicholas Andrew Serota, (born 27 April 1946) is an English art historian and curator, who served as the Director of the Tate from 1988 to 2017. He is currently Chair of Arts Council England, a role which he has held since February 2017. ...

. He sent a brief reply: "Thank you for your open letter dated 6 March. You will not be surprised to learn that I have no comment to make on your letter, or your manifesto 'Remodernism'." In the ''Remodernism'' manifesto, the Stuckists declared that they aimed to replace postmodernism with remodernism, a period of renewed spiritual (as opposed to religious) values in art, culture and society. Other manifestos have included ''Handy Hints'', ''Anti-anti-art'', ''The Cappuccino writer and the Idiocy of Contemporary Writing'', ''The Turner Prize'', ''The Decreptitude of the Critic'' and ''Stuckist critique of Damien Hirst''. In ''Anti-anti-art'', the Stuckists outlined their opposition to what is known as "

". Stuckists claim that

is justified by the work of

Marcel Duchamp Henri-Robert-Marcel Duchamp (, , ; 28 July 1887 – 2 October 1968) was a French painter, sculptor, chess player, and writer whose work is associated with Cubism, Dada, and conceptual art. Duchamp is commonly regarded, along with Pablo Picasso ...

, but that Duchamp's work is "anti-art by intent and effect". The Stuckists feel that "Duchamp's work was a protest against the stale, unthinking artistic establishment of his day", while "the great (but wholly unintentional) irony of postmodernism is that it is a direct equivalent of the conformist, unoriginal establishment that Duchamp attacked in the first place". Manifestos have been written by other Stuckists, including the Students for Stuckism group. An "Underage Stuckists" group was founded in 2006 with a manifesto for teenagers written by two 16-year-olds, Liv Soul and Rebekah Maybury, on MySpace. In 2009, a group calling itself The Other Muswell Hill Stuckists published ''The Founding, Manifesto and Rules of The Other Muswell Hill Stuckists''.

Growth in UK

In July 1999, the Stuckists were first mentioned in the media, in an article in ''The Evening Standard'' and soon gained other coverage, helped by press interest in Tracey Emin, who had been nominated for the

. The first Stuckist show was ''Stuck! Stuck! Stuck!'' in September 1999 in Joe Crompton's in Shoreditch Gallery 108 (now defunct), followed by ''The Resignation of Sir Nicholas Serota''. In 2000 they staged ''The Real Turner Prize Show'' at the same time as the

Tate Gallery 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 ...

's Turner Prize exhibition. A "Students for Stuckism" group was founded in 2000 by students from

Camberwell College of Arts Camberwell College of Arts is a public tertiary art school in Camberwell, in London, England. It is one of the six constituent colleges of the University of the Arts London. It offers further and higher education programmes, including postgrad ...

, who staged their own exhibition. S.P. Howarth was expelled from the painting degree course at Camberwell college for his paintings, and had the first solo exhibit at the Stuckism International Gallery in 2002, named ''I Don't Want a Painting Degree if it Means Not Painting''. Thomson stood as a Stuckist candidate for the 2001 British General Election, in the constituency of

Islington South & Finsbury Islington South and Finsbury is a constituency created in 1974 and represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2005 by Emily Thornberry of the Labour Party. Thornberry served as Shadow Foreign Secretary from 2016 until 2020 a ...

, against Chris Smith, the then

Secretary of State for Culture The secretary of state for digital, culture, media and sport, also referred to as the culture secretary, is a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, with overall responsibility for strategy and policy across the Department f ...

. He picked up 108 votes (0.4%). Childish left the group at this time because he objected to Thomson's leadership. From 2002 to 2005 Thomson ran the Stuckism International Centre and Gallery in Shoreditch, London. In 2003, under the title ''A Dead Shark Isn't Art'', the gallery exhibited a shark which had first been put on public display in 1989 (two years before

Damien Hirst Damien Steven Hirst (; né Brennan; born 7 June 1965) is an English artist, entrepreneur, and art collector. He is one of the Young British Artists (YBAs) who dominated the art scene in the UK during the 1990s. He is reportedly the United Kingd ...

's) by Eddie Saunders in his Shoreditch shop, JD Electrical Supplies. It was suggested that Hirst may have seen this and copied it."A Dead Shark Isn't Art"
stuckism.com. Retrieved 20 March 2006. In 2003 they reported Charles Saatchi to the UK Office of Fair Trading, complaining that he had an effective monopoly on art. The complaint was not upheld. In 2003, an allied group, Stuckism Photography, was founded by Larry Dunstan and Andy Bullock. In 2005 the Stuckists offered a donation of 175 paintings from the Walker show to the Tate, but it was rejected by the Tate's trustees. In August 2005 Thomson alerted the press to the fact that the Tate had purchased a work by

Chris Ofili Christopher Ofili, (born 10 October 1968) is a British Turner Prize-winning painter who is best known for his paintings incorporating elephant dung. He was one of the Young British Artists. Since 2005, Ofili has been living and working in T ...

, ''The Upper Room'', for £705,000 while the artist was a serving Tate trustee. Fraser Kee Scott, owner of A Gallery, demonstrated with the Stuckists outside the Tate Gallery against the gallery's purchase of ''The Upper Room''. Scott said 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 f ...

'' that the Tate Gallery's chairman, Paul Myners, was hypocritical for refusing to divulge the price paid. Ofili had asked other artists to donate work to the gallery.Walden, Celia. "Spy: Art-felt grumble", ''

'', p. 22, 19 October 2008. In July 2006 the Charity Commission censured the gallery for acting outside its legal powers. Sir Nicholas Serota stated that the Stuckists had "acted in the public interest". In October 2006, the Stuckists staged their first exhibition, '' Go West'', in a commercial West End gallery,

Spectrum London Spectrum London was a London art gallery which showed contemporary figurative painting, photography and sculpture. It staged '' Go West'', the first commercial West End show of the Stuckists, and a retrospective by Sebastian Horsley. It closed ...

,Barnes, Anthony (2006
"Portrait of an ex-husband's revenge"
''The Independent on Sunday''. Retrieved 9 October 2006, from findarticles.com signalling their entry as "major players" in the art world.Teodorczuk, Tom (2006
"Modern art is pants"
''

London Evening Standard The ''Evening Standard'', formerly ''The Standard'' (1827–1904), also known as the ''London Evening Standard'', is a local free daily newspaper in London, England, published Monday to Friday in tabloid format. In October 2009, after be ...

'', 22 August 2006. Retrieved 9 October 2006 from thisislondon.co.uk. An international symposium on Stuckism took place in October 2006 at the Liverpool John Moores University during the Liverpool Biennial. The programme was led by

Naive John Naive John (born Ian Wylie; 18 October 1962) is a British artist and figurative painter. His work shows attention to detail with subjects that combine elements from popular culture alongside the mythic and mundane. He has also in the past been ...

, founder of the Liverpool Stuckists. There was an accompanying exhibition in the 68 Hope Gallery at

Liverpool School of Art and Design The John Lennon Art and Design Building (formerly the Art and Design Academy) in Liverpool, England, houses Liverpool John Moores University's School of Art and Design. The school was formerly located at the Grade II listed Liverpool College of ...

(John Moores University Gallery). By 2006 there were 63 Stuckist groups in the UK. Members include Naive John,

Mark D Mark D, born Mark Randall,Deedes, Henry ''The Independent'', 13 February 2008. Retrieved 13 February 2008. is a British punk musician (guitarist and songwriter). He is also associated with the Stuckist group of artists. Mark D was born and spent ...

Elsa Dax Elsa Dax (born 14 May 1972) is a French painter and a member of the Stuckists art movement.Milner, Frank ed. (2004), ''The Stuckists Punk Victorian'', p. 58, National Museums Liverpool, . Major themes in her work are myth, legend and fairytale.B ...

Paul Harvey Paul Harvey Aurandt (September 4, 1918 – February 28, 2009) was an American radio broadcaster for ABC News Radio. He broadcast ''News and Comment'' on mornings and mid-days on weekdays and at noon on Saturdays and also his famous '' The Rest ...

, Jane Kelly,

Udaiyan Stuckism is an international anti-conceptual art and pro-figurative art, figurative painting art movement founded by Charles Thomson (artist), Charles Thomson and Billy Childish in 1999.Peter McArdle Peter McArdle (born 17 December 1965) is an English artist, member of the Stuckists art group and gallery owner.Milner, Frank (Editor). ''The Stuckists Punk Victorian'', p. 96, National Museums Liverpool, 2004. . The biography ostuckism.comis ...

, Peter Murphy,

Rachel Jordan Rachel Jordan (born 8 May 1968) is a British artist and has been a frequent guest exhibitor with the Stuckists.Milner, Frank ed. ''The Stuckists Punk Victorian'', p. 126, National Museums Liverpool 2004, For Stuckist shows she created satir ...

, Guy Denning and

Abby Jackson Abby Jackson (born 1982) is a British artist, Stuckist painter, writer and art activist. Life and work Abby Jackson was born in North Devon and lives and works in London. She attended Somerset College of Art and studied advertising. In 2002, ...

. John Bourne opened Stuckism Wales at his home, a permanent exhibition of (mainly Welsh) paintings.

Mandy McCartin Mandy McCartin (born 10 April 1958) is an English artist based in London, a "proud butch lesbian" and DJ "classic soul fanatic". Life and work Mandy McCartin was born in Sheffield, England, and went to North East London Polytechnic (now the U ...

is a regular guest artist. In 2010, Paul Harvey's painting of Charles Saatchi was banned from the window display of the Artspace Gallery in

Maddox Street Maddox Street is a street in the Mayfair area of London, extending from Regent Street to St George's, Hanover Square. History Maddox Street was completed in 1720. It was named after Sir Benjamin Maddox who owned the Millfield estate on which ...

, London, on the grounds that it was "too controversial for the area"."Charles Saatchi painting gets Stuckists shut down"
Spoonfed Media, 25 August 2010. Retrieved 28 August 2010. It was the centrepiece of the show, ''Stuckist Clowns Doing Their Dirty Work'', the first exhibition of the Stuckists in Mayfair, and depicted Saatchi with a sheep at his feet and a halo made from a cheese wrapper. The

Saatchi Gallery The Saatchi Gallery is a London art gallery, 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, mov ...

said that Saatchi "would not have any problem" with the painting's display.Wilkinson, Tara Loade
"Mayfair divided over Charles Saatchi cheese painting"
''

Financial News ''Financial News'' is a financial newspaper and news website published in London. It is a weekly newspaper, published by eFinancial News Limited, covering the financial services sector through news, views and extensive people coverage. ''Fin ...

'', 26 August 2010. Retrieved 28 August 2010. The gallery announced they were shutting down the show. Harvey said, "I did it to make Saatchi look friendly and human. It's a ludicrous decision". The Stuckists protested with emails to the gallery.Carmichael, Kim
"Painting by North East artist sparks row in art world"
, '' The Journal'', 28 August 2010. Retrieved 28 August 2010. Subsequently, the painting was reinstated and the show continued.

Demonstrations

The Stuckists gained significant media coverage for eight years of protests (2000–2006 and 2008) outside Tate Britain against the Turner Prize, sometimes dressed as clowns. In 2001 they demonstrated in

Trafalgar Square Trafalgar Square ( ) is a public square in the City of Westminster, Central London, laid out in the early 19th century around the area formerly known as Charing Cross. At its centre is a high column bearing a statue of Admiral Nelson comm ...

at the unveiling of

Rachel Whiteread Dame Rachel Whiteread (born 20 April 1963) is an English artist who primarily produces sculptures, which typically take the form of casts. She was the first woman to win the annual Turner Prize in 1993. Whiteread was one of the Young British Ar ...

's ''Monument''. In 2002, they carried a coffin marked ''The Death of Conceptual Art'' to the White Cube Gallery. In 2004 outside the launch of ''The Triumph of Painting'' at the Saatchi Gallery they wore tall hats with Charles Saatchi's face emblazoned and carried placards claiming that Saatchi had copied their ideas. Events outside Britain have included ''The Clown Trial of President Bush'' held in

New Haven New Haven is a city in the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is located on New Haven Harbor on the northern shore of Long Island Sound in New Haven County, Connecticut and is part of the New York City metropolitan area. With a population of 134,023 ...

in 2003 to protest against the

Iraq War {{Infobox military conflict , conflict = Iraq War {{Nobold, {{lang, ar, حرب العراق (Arabic) {{Nobold, {{lang, ku, شەڕی عێراق ( Kurdish) , partof = the Iraq conflict and the War on terror , image ...

. Michael Dickinson has exhibited political and satirical collages in

Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with a small portion on the Balkan Peninsula in ...

for which he was arrested,Birch, Nicholas
"Briton charged over 'insult' to Turkish PM"
''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

'', 13 September 2006. Retrieved 2 September 2007. and charged, but acquitted of any crime—an outcome which was seen to have positive implications for Turkey's relationship with the

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been de ...

.Tait, Robert
"Turkish court acquits British artist over portraying PM as US poodle"
''

'', 26 September 2008. Retrieved 15 November 2008.

The Stuckists Punk Victorian

''The Stuckists Punk Victorian'' was the first national gallery exhibition of Stuckist art. It was held at the Walker Art Gallery and

Lady Lever Art Gallery The Lady Lever Art Gallery is a museum founded and built by the industrialist and philanthropist William Lever, 1st Viscount Leverhulme and opened in 1922. The Lady Lever Art Gallery is set in the garden village of Port Sunlight, on the Wirral ...

and was part of the 2004 Liverpool Biennial. It consisted of over 250 paintings by 37 artists, mostly from the UK but also with a representation of international Stuckist artists from the US, Germany and Australia. There was an accompanying exhibition of Stuckist photographers. A book, ''The Stuckists Punk Victorian'', was published to accompany the exhibition. '' Daily Mail'' journalist Jane Kelly exhibited a painting of

Myra Hindley The Moors murders were carried out by Ian Brady and Myra Hindley between July 1963 and October 1965, in and around Manchester, England. The victims were five children—Pauline Reade, John Kilbride, Keith Bennett, Lesley Ann Downey, and Edward E ...

in the show, which may have been the cause of her dismissal from her job.Wells, Matt and Cozens, Claire
"Daily Mail sacks writer who painted Hindley picture"
''

'', 30 September 2004. Retrieved 1 February 2008.

A Gallery

In July 2007, the Stuckists held an exhibition at A Gallery, ''I Won't Have Sex with You as long as We're Married'',Duff, Oliver
"Stuckists prune Vine"
''

The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publish ...

'', 5 June 2007. Retrieved 24 December 2008. Moody, Paul
"Everyone's talking about Stella Vine"
''

'', 12 July 2007. Retrieved 9 December 2008. titled after words apparently said to Thomson by his ex-wife,

Stella Vine Stella Vine (born Melissa Jane Robson, 1969) is an English artist, who lives and works in London. Her work is figurative painting, with subjects drawn from personal life, as well as from rock stars, royalty, and other celebrities. In 2001, she ...

on their wedding night. The show coincided with the opening of Vine's major show at

Modern Art Oxford Modern Art Oxford is an art gallery established in 1965 in Oxford, England. From 1965 to 2002, it was called The Museum of Modern Art, Oxford. The gallery presents exhibitions of modern and contemporary art. It has a national and internationa ...

and was prompted by Thomson's anger that the material promoting her show did not mention her time with the Stuckists. Tate chairman

Paul Myners Paul Myners, Baron Myners, (1 April 1948 – 16 January 2022) was a British businessman and politician. In October 2008 he was elevated to the House of Lords as a life peer and was appointed City Minister in the Labour Government of Gordon B ...

visited both shows.Duff, Oliver
"Legal sharks circle round Davis and his chief of staff"
(3rd story), ''

'', 27 July 2007. Retrieved 24 December 2008.

''Sir Nicholas Serota Makes an Acquisitions Decision''

As Charlotte Cripps of ''

'' wrote, Charles Thomson's painting ''Sir Nicholas Serota Makes an Acquisitions Decision'' is one of the best known paintings to come out of the Stuckist movement,Cripps, Charlotte
"Visual arts: Saying knickers to Sir Nicholas
''

'', 7 September 2004. Retrieved from findarticles.com, 7 April 2008. and as Jane Morris wrote in ''

'' it's a likely "signature piece" for the movement,Morris, Jane
"Getting stuck in"
''

'', 24 August 2006. Retrieved 19 April 2008. standing for its opposition to conceptual art. Painted in 2000, the piece has been exhibited in later Stuckist shows, and featured on placards in Stuckist demonstrations against the Turner Prize. It depicts Sir Nicholas Serota, Director of the Tate Gallery and the usual chairman of the Turner Prize jury, and satirises Young British Artist Tracey Emin's installation, ''

My Bed ''My Bed'' is a work by the English artist Tracey Emin. First created in 1998, it was exhibited at the Tate Gallery in 1999 as one of the shortlisted works for the Turner Prize. It consisted of her bed with bedroom objects in a dishevelled stat ...

'', consisting of her bed and objects, including

knickers Panties (in American English; also called pants, undies, or knickers in British English) are a form of women's underwear. Panties can be form-fitting or loose. Typical components include an elastic Waistline (clothing), waistband, a crotch pan ...

, which she exhibited in 1999 as a Turner Prize nominee.Cassidy, Sarah
"Stuckists, scourge of BritArt, put on their own exhibition"
, ''

'', 23 August 2006. Retrieved 19 April 2008.

International movement

In 2000

Regan Tamanui Regan Tamanui is an artist based in Melbourne, Australia. In October 2000, he founded the Melbourne Stuckists, the fourth Stuckism, Stuckist of the original Stuckist groups and the first outside the United Kingdom. He has also painted prolifi ...

started the first Stuckist group outside Britain in Melbourne, Australia, and it was decided that other artists should be free to start their own groups also, named after their locality. Thomson, Charles, "A Stuckist on Stuckism" in: Milner, Frank, ed. ''The Stuckists Punk Victorian'', p.20,

2004, . Essay available online a
stuckism.com
Stuckism has since grown into an international art movement of 233 groups in 52 countries, as of July 2012.

Africa

Mafa Bamba founded ''The Abidgan Stuckists'' in 2001 in Ivory Coast and Kari Seid founded ''The Cape Town Stuckists'' in 2008 in South Africa.
stuckism.com. Retrieved 30 November 2011.

America

In 2000, Susan Constanse founded the first US group ''The Pittsburgh Stuckists'' in

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Western Pennsylvania, the second-most populous city in Pennsylva ...

—the second group to be founded outside the UK. This was announced in the ''In Pittsburgh Weekly'', 1 November 2000: "The new word in art is Stuckism. A Stuckist paints their life, mind and soul with no pretensions and no excuses." By 2011 there are 44 US Stuckist groups. There have been Stuckist shows and demonstrations in the US, and American Stuckists have also exhibited in international Stuckist shows abroad. US Stuckists include Ron Throop,

Jeffrey Scott Holland Jeffrey Scott Holland, (born May 13, 1966), is an artist, writer and musician living both in New York City and in Louisville, Kentucky. He is an active member of the Stuckist and Remodernist art movements, holding a traveling exhibit of Stuckis ...

Frank Kozik Frank Kozik (born January 9, 1962 in Madrid) is an American graphic artist best known for his posters for alternative rock bands. History Kozik has worked with Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, Stone Temple Pilots, the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Me ...

and

Terry Marks Terry Marks is a Stuckist artist in New York City. She was one of the US artists in the show '' The Stuckists Punk Victorian'' at the Walker Art Gallery during the 2004 Liverpool Biennial. She is also a tattooist and actor for film and televi ...

. There are also 4 Stuckist groups in Canada including ''The White Rock Stuckists'' in

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...

founded by David Wilson.

Asia

Asim Butt founded the first Pakistani Stuckist group, ''The Karachi Stuckists'', in 2005. At the end of 2009 he was thinking of expanding ''The Karachi Stuckists'' with new members, but on 15 January 2010 he committed suicide. In 2011 Sheherbano Husain restarted the group. ''The Tehran Stuckists'' is an Iranian Stuckist, Remodernist and anti-anti-art group of painters founded in 2007 in

Tehran Tehran (; fa, تهران ) is the largest city in Tehran Province and the capital of Iran. With a population of around 9 million in the city and around 16 million in the larger metropolitan area of Greater Tehran, Tehran is the most popul ...

, which is a major protagonist of Asian Stuckism. In April 2010 they curated the first Stuckist exhibition in Iran, ''Tehran Stuckists: Searching for the Unlimited Potentials of Figurative Painting'', at Iran Artists Forum, Mirmiran Gallery.Exhibitions - Tehran Stuckists
Tehran Stuckists website. Retrieved 10 February 2012. Their second exhibition, ''International Stuckists: Painters Out of Order'', including paintings by Stuckists from Iran, Britain, USA, Spain, South Africa, Pakistan and Turkey was held at Day Gallery in November 2013.International Exhibition of Works of Stuckist Artists in Tehran
, Tehran Municipality website. Retrieved 20 October 2014. Although one of the main aspects of Stuckism movement is that "the Stuckist allows him/herself uncensored expression", but ''The Tehran Stuckists exhibitions in Iran are censored and they are not allowed to exhibit some of their artworks in Iranian galleries."Articles about Art 2": ''Analytic Study of Stuckism Movement in Paintings'' , Tayebeh Rouzbahani, page 237
Daryabeygi publications
, 2014, . The group has also participated in Stuckist exhibitions in Britain, Lithuania and Spain. Other Asian Stuckists are Shelley Li (China), Smeetha Boumik (India), Joko Apridinoto (Indonesia), Elio Yuri Figini (Japan) and Fady Chamaa (Lebanon).

Europe

''The Prague Stuckists'' were founded in 2005 in the Czech Republic by Robert Janás,

, Robert Janás,

Edward Lucie-Smith John Edward McKenzie Lucie-Smith (born 27 February 1933), known as Edward Lucie-Smith, is a Jamaican-born English writer, poet, art critic, curator and broadcaster. He has been highly prolific in these fields, writing or editing over a hundred ...

, "The Enemies of Art: The Stuckists" (2011), p. 8
Victoria Press
, . Other Stuckist artists in Europe include Peter Klint (Germany), Michael Dickinson (Turkey),

Odysseus Yakoumakis Odysseus Yakoumakis ( el, Οδυσσέας Γιακουμάκης; born 1956) is a Stuckism, Stuckist artist, painter and illustrator, based in Athens, Greece. He is the founder of the first Greek Stuckist group, The Romantic Anonymous Fellowshi ...

(Greece), Artista Eli (Spain), Kloot Per W (Belgium), Jaroslav Valečka (Czech Republic), Jiří Hauschka (Czech Republic),

, "Stuck Between Prague and London: Paul Harvey Jiri Hauschka Edgeworth Johnstone Charles Thomson Jaroslav Valecka" (2013)
Victoria Press
, . As available on Amazon.co.uk. Markéta Korečková (Czech Republic), Ján Macko (Slovakia) and Pavel Lefterov (Bulgaria).

Oceania

In October 2000, Regan Tamanui founded ''The Melbourne Stuckists'' in Melbourne, the fourth Stuckist group to be started and the first one outside the UK. On 27 October 2000, he staged the ''Real Turner Prize Show'' at the Dead End Gallery in his home, concurrent with three shows with the same title in England (London, Falmouth and

Dartington Dartington is a village in Devon, England. Its population is 876. The electoral ward of ''Dartington'' includes the surrounding area and had a population of 1,753 at the 2011 census. It is located west of the River Dart, south of Dartington ...

) and one in Germany in protest against the Tate Gallery's Turner Prize. Other Australian Stuckists include

Godfrey Blow Godfrey Blow (born 6 October 1948) is an artist based in Kalamunda, Western Australia. He is the founder of the Perth Stuckists. Life and art Godfrey Blow was born in North Hykeham, Lincolnshire, England on the same day as fellow Stuckist ...

, who exhibited in ''The Stuckists Punk Victorian''. In 2005 Mike Mayhew also founded ''The Christchurch Stuckists'' in New Zealand.

Ex-Stuckists

Co-founder Billy Childish left the group in 2001, but has stated that he remains committed to its principles. Sexton Ming left to concentrate on a solo career with the Aquarium Gallery. Wolf Howard left in 2006, but has exhibited with the group since.

Jesse Richards Jesse Richards (born July 17, 1975) is a painter, filmmaker and photographer from New Haven, Connecticut and was affiliated with the international movement Stuckism. He has been described as "one of the most provocative names in American underg ...

who ran the Stuckism Centre USA in New Haven, left the group in 2006 to focus on

Remodernist film Remodernist film developed in the United States and the United Kingdom in the early 21st century with ideas related to those of the international art movement Stuckism and its manifesto, Remodernism. Key figures are Jesse Richards and Peter Rina ...

In June 2000, Stella Vine went to a talk given by Childish and Thomson on Stuckism and Remodernism in London."Stella Vine the Stuckist in photos"
stuckism.com. Retrieved 18 December 2008. At the end of May 2001, she exhibited some of her paintings publicly for the first time in the ''Vote Stuckist'' show in Brixton, and formed The Westminster Stuckists group. Thomson, Charles (August 2004), "A Stuckist on Stuckism: Stella Vine", from: Ed. Frank Milner (2004), ''The Stuckists Punk Victorian'', p. 23,

, . Available online a
stuckism.com
On 4 June, she took part in a Stuckist demonstration in Trafalgar Square. By 10 July, she renamed her group The Unstuckists. In mid-August, Thomson and Vine married. A work by her was shown in the Stuckist show in Paris, which ended in mid-November, by which time she had rejected the Stuckists, and the marriage had ended. In February 2004, Charles Saatchi bought a painting of Diana, Princess of Wales, by Vine and was credited with "discovering" her. Thomson said it was the Stuckists and not Saatchi who had discovered her.Alleyne, Richard
"The 'Saatchi effect' has customers queueing for new artist"
''

'', 28 February 2004. Retrieved 10 January 2008. At the end of March 2004, Thomson made a formal complaint about Saatchi to the Office of Fair Trading, claiming that Saatchi's leading position was monopolistic "to the detriment of smaller competitors",Stummer, Robin
"Charles Saatchi 'abuses his hold on British art market'"
''

The Independent on Sunday ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was published ...

'', 28 March 2004. Retrieved 17 December 2008. citing Vine as an example of this.Renton, Andrew. "Artists' licence; Collector Charles Saatchi, artist Tracey Emin and painter Stella Vine have all been criticised for 'unfair' practices. But 'fairness' would kill art.", ''

'', p. 41, 6 April 2004. On 15 April, the OFT closed the file on the case on the basis that Saatchi was not "in a dominant position in any relevant market."

Responses and critique

In 1999, two performance artists, Yuan Cai and Jian Jun Xi, jumped on Tracey Emin's installation ''My Bed'', a work consisting of the artist's own unmade bed, at the Tate Gallery's Turner Prize, in an unauthorised

art intervention Art intervention is an interaction with a previously existing artwork, audience, venue/space or situation. It has the auspice of conceptual art and is commonly a form of performance art. It is associated with the Viennese Actionists, the Dada mov ...

. Cai had written, among other things, the words "Anti Stuckism" on his bare back. Fiachra Gibbons of ''The Guardian'' wrote (in 1999) that the event "will go down in art history as the defining moment of the new and previously unheard of Anti-Stuckist Movement."Gibbons, Fiachra (199
"Satirists Jump into Tracey's Bed"
'

'' online, 25 October 1999. Retrieved 22 March 2006. Writing in ''The Guardian'' ten years later, Jonathan Jones described the Stuckists as "enemies of art", and what they say as "cheap slogans" and "hysterical rants". The artist Max Podstolski wrote that the art world needed a new manifesto, as confrontational as that of Futurism or

Dadaism Dada () or Dadaism was an art movement of the European avant-garde in the early 20th century, with early centres in Zürich, Switzerland, at the Cabaret Voltaire (Zurich), Cabaret Voltaire (in 1916). New York Dada began c. 1915, and after 192 ...

, "written with a heart-felt passion capable of inspiring and rallying art world outsiders, dissenters, rebels, the neglected and disaffected", and suggests that "Well now we've got it, in the form of Stuckism". New York art gallery owner Edward Winkleman wrote in 2006 that he had never heard of the Stuckists, so he "looked them up on Wikipedia", and stated he was "turned off by their anti-conceptual stance, not to mention the inanity of their statement about painting, but I'm more than a bit interested in the democratization their movement represents." Thomson responded to Winkleman directly. Also in 2006, Colin Gleadell, writing in ''

The Telegraph ''The Telegraph'', ''Daily Telegraph'', ''Sunday Telegraph'' and other variant names are popular names for newspapers. Newspapers with these titles include: Australia * ''The Telegraph'' (Adelaide), a newspaper in Adelaide, South Australia, publ ...

'', noted that the Stuckists' first exhibition in central London had brought "multiple sales" for leading artists of the movement, and that this raised the question of how good they were at painting. He observed that "Whatever the critics may say, buyers from the UK, the US and Japan have already taken a punt. Six of Thomson's paintings have sold for between £4,000 and £5,000 each. Joe Machine, a former

prisoner A prisoner (also known as an inmate or detainee) is a person who is deprived of liberty against their will. This can be by confinement, captivity, or forcible restraint. The term applies particularly to serving a prison sentence in a prison. ...

who paints for therapeutic reasons, has also sold six paintings for the same price." The BBC arts correspondent Lawrence Pollard wrote in 2009 that the way was paved for "cultural agitators" like the Stuckists, as well as the

Vorticists Vorticism was a London-based Modernism, modernist art movement formed in 1914 by the writer and artist Wyndham Lewis. The movement was partially inspired by Cubism and was introduced to the public by means of the publication of the Vorticist mani ...

, Surrealists and others, by the Futurist Manifesto of 20 February 1909.

Gallery

Some UK artists. Image:Philip Absolon. Breakdown.jpg,

. ''Breakdown'' (uploaded 2008, date of creation not known) Image:John Bourne. Epsom Kitchen.jpg, John Bourne. ''Epsom Kitchen'' (uploaded 2008) Image:Mark D. Victoria Beckham.jpg,

. ''Victoria Beckham: America Doesn't Love Me'' (uploaded 2008) Image:Elsa Dax. Bacchus.jpg,

. ''Bacchus'' (uploaded 2008) Image:Eamon Everall. The Marriage.jpg, Eamon Everall. ''The Marriage'' (uploaded 2008) Image:Ella Guru, Goodbye Columbus.jpg,

. ''Goodbye Columbus'', (uploaded 2008) Image:Paul Harvey, Ford Anglia with Tent and Giotto Tree.jpg,

. ''Ford Anglia with Tent and Giotto Tree'' (uploaded 2008) Image:Jane Kelly. Psychosis 1.jpg, Jane Kelly. ''If We Could Undo Psychosis 1'' (uploaded 2008) Image:Bill Lewis. The Laughter of Small White Dogs.jpg,

. ''The Laughter of Small White Dogs'' (uploaded 2008) Image:Joe Machine, Diana Dors with an Axe.jpg,

. ''Diana Dors with an Axe'' (uploaded 2008) Image:Peter McArdle, Artist and Model.jpg,

Peter McArdle Peter McArdle (born 17 December 1965) is an English artist, member of the Stuckists art group and gallery owner.Milner, Frank (Editor). ''The Stuckists Punk Victorian'', p. 96, National Museums Liverpool, 2004. . The biography ostuckism.comis ...

. ''Artist and Model'' (uploaded 2008) Image:Charles Thomson. A Single Woman in London.jpg,

. ''A Single Woman in London Is Never more than Six Inches from the Nearest Rat'' (uploaded 2008)

References

External links

Stuckism International

Charles Thomson Interviewed about Stuckism

Stuckism in Germany

Prague Stuckists

Tehran Stuckists

Central Europe Stuckists
{{Authority control Remodernism Visual arts genres Contemporary art Arts organizations established in 1999