David Shrigley is perhaps best known today for his quick-witted drawings with satirical and political themes, often based on overheard conversations that highlight the absurdity of everyday fears and aspirations.
However, in the mid-1990s, when he rose to prominence alongside those artists who came to be known as the ‘YBAs’, Shrigley was known more for his sculptural work, of which Portrait is a stunning example.
There is always humour in Shrigley’s work, as well as a love of ordinary things – that can be transformed by the artist into sites of reflection, inspiration and joy.
Born in Macclesfield in 1968 and educated at the prestigious Glasgow School of Art from 1988 until 1991, Shrigley’s work spans an extensive range of media including sculpture, installations, painting, music and photography.
Inspired by artists such as Marcel Duchamp and René Magritte, he teases the viewer with humorous moral conundrums, about which he has commented: ‘It’s a matter of making fun of the things you could get depressed about’.
IMAGE: Andy Miah
