Grayson Perry's Who Are You? exhibition
- Published
New works by maverick British artist Grayson Perry are to go on show in an exhibition entitled Who Are You? at London's National Portrait Gallery, opening this week.
The pieces focus on the theme of identity in modern Britain and include tapestries, sculptures and ceramics.
The works were created during the making of a Channel 4 series, which began this week. The series follows Perry as he spends time with people, some well-known, who are struggling with their own identity. The artist subsequently created a work that captured their situation.
The exhibition begins with the huge tapestry Comfort Blanket, which the artist describes as "a portrait of Britain to wrap yourself up in, a giant banknote, things we love, and love to hate".
The Earl of Essex is a portrait of former X Factor contestant Rylan Clark, which Perry painted in the style of the 17th Century miniature portrait artist Nicholas Hilliard.
Another tapestry in the display is called Line of Departure. It has been created in the style of an Afghan rug, which shows three wounded war veterans in a room surrounded by the National Portrait's Gallery's pictures of Lord Baden-Powell, Florence Nightingale, Mary Seacole and soldiers Lord Kitchener and Frederick Barnaby.
Jesus Army Money Box is a ceramic in the form of a medieval-style "chasse" - a small enamelled chest containing a holy relic - which depicts a Christian group that works with the homeless.
Three glazed pots in the exhibition represent the "modern family". One is entitled Idealised Heterosexual Couple, which shows divorcees who live apart but whose family is brought together through its love of ballroom dancing classes.
The Ashford Hijab is a silk screenprint depicting Muslim convert Kayleigh Khosravi and her children as they move away from what Perry describes as the "temple of consumerism" of the Ashford Designer Outlet Centre to the focal point of the Muslim faith in Mecca.
Grayson Perry: Who Are You? can be seen at the National Portrait Gallery until 15 March 2015.