Welcome to the world of Grayson Perry, where art, identity, and culture collide in a vibrant tapestry of creativity. As an acclaimed contemporary artist, potter, writer, and broadcaster, Grayson Perry transcends boundaries, challenging conventional notions of art and society. With a unique blend of wit, insight, and irreverence, Perry’s work delves into the complexities of modern life, exploring themes of gender, class, politics, and more.
Through his provocative art installations, ceramic creations, and thought-provoking lectures, Perry invites us to question the status quo and embrace the rich diversity of human experience. His bold and colorful pieces not only captivate the eye but also stimulate the mind, encouraging viewers to contemplate the nuances of identity and representation in today’s world. With a keen eye for detail and a sharp sense of humor, Perry navigates the intricacies of contemporary culture with unparalleled insight and empathy. Now, delve into the world of Grayson Perry as we present a curated collection of his most memorable quotes, each offering a glimpse into the mind of this visionary artist. Get ready to be inspired, challenged, and entertained by the words of Grayson Perry below.
As human beings, we are addicted to novelty. Part of being stylish is surprisingness. Part of being an artist is surprisingness. If there are ingredients of beauty, it certainly is one of them. Surprise is like a spice on the meal, it makes you say: ‘woo’. Grayson Perry
Ive never actually sold a Post-it note, but I think I might. Grayson Perry
Gender is great, and Im happy for anybody to celebrate wherever they are on the gender spectrum. Its got amazingly much easier in my lifetime. Grayson Perry
One of the dangers of male emotionality is that theyre not aware of it churning away beneath them the whole time. Grayson Perry
I often hear women approvingly describe themselves or other women as feisty. Feisty, I feel, has sexist implications, as if standing up for yourself was exceptional in a woman. It sounds like a word that a raffish Lothario would use about a difficult conquest. Grayson Perry
My father was a keen photographer; he had his own darkroom. Grayson Perry
Part of being an artist is that you are achingly self-conscious about every aesthetic decision you make, and taste is at its most powerful when it’s a default, unconscious decision because that’s when all the influence of your childhood and background and society comes into play. Grayson Perry
Maybe if they didnt tense up, always need to be competitive, always need to be in charge, always need to be the one at the top, men might find that there are benefits from releasing the grip of power. Grayson Perry
If you had bought my work in 1983 you could have had it for next to nothing. Grayson Perry
Some people will have working-class, front-room grandma taste that is better than other people’s. I went to stately homes that are a bit duff, and stately homes that were absolutely eye-popping. Grayson Perry
I dont care how Ill be remembered after death. For all I know people will put all my work in a skip the next day. Grayson Perry
My record-keeping hasnt improved much; I recently moved house and found five pots in the loft which had been unseen since the 80s and a dozen plates from the early 90s in a cupboard under a sink! Grayson Perry
People are always happy to tell you what they think of as bad taste, but when you ask them what they really like themselves, theyre suddenly very vulnerable. Grayson Perry
The art world would have you believe that anything can be art. But, of course, there’s actually many things that aren’t art. And we would all recognize it when it isn’t. Grayson Perry
Well, intellectual importance is directly linked to financial value in the art world. I mean, thats the thing you really want – museum quality. You want to go down in the annals of art history. Grayson Perry
The male role is heavily policed from birth, by parents, peers and bosses. Politicians in particular are harshly kept in line by a media that seems to uphold more bizarrely rigid standards of conformity than those held by any citizen. Grayson Perry
If you act as if you love someone and care about them, then before long you do care and you do love them. Grayson Perry
I did basic embroidery and can probably mend a sock. Grayson Perry
The best view is always from the mountain you’ve climbed. Grayson Perry
How art works is really interesting. It comes from our unconscious, a lot of it. And were communicating in ways were not completely aware of when were making it. Grayson Perry
I cant make art to please everybody all the time. I make art that I like. Grayson Perry
I always think that painters are fighting over the last original brushstroke. To find your own voice is incredibly hard. Grayson Perry
I tick so many boxes. Thats why I get a lot of gigs – because I can do the lectures, I can do the television thing, and I dress up, and by the way, Im an artist as well. Grayson Perry
Self-consciousness is almost the biggest thing you have to deal with as an artist. That’s why many artists crash and burn, because they can’t handle the attention and the financial implications of every brushstroke. Grayson Perry
Well, within my business, visual art, the intake is 75 per cent female and yet you look at who has showed their work and I think there still is a dominance of males. Grayson Perry
For me, earnestness is the greatest crime an Englishman can commit. Grayson Perry
Early on, my way of teasing the art world was by playing at being accessible. Like making pottery: I thought people would buy that for Christmas presents. Grayson Perry
I think sometimes in the art world theres an implication that you need an entry-level education to walk through the door of a gallery. But you dont. The learning experience actually happens once youre in the gallery. Grayson Perry
Mother had an affair with the milkman, who later became my stepdad and my father left. My stepdad was an angry guy and Mother was a hysterical narcissist. It was a toxic mixture and there was a lot of disruption and violent arguments in the house. Grayson Perry
I think I grew up in an ‘acultural’ household – no books, no paintings, never went to an art gallery. I say that, but of course we had the TV. Grayson Perry
Of course I can change a plug. But my father would not only know how to change a plug, he could have rewired the house, built the back wall. Its a generational thing. Grayson Perry
I was very excited when the Holburne Museum proposed a show of my ceramics from the 80s and early 90s as it would also be an opportunity to find and record the beginnings of my career. Grayson Perry
I love learning. I always learn on the job. Grayson Perry
I hate it when people say that art shouldnt be a commodity. A lot of the rooms in museums, and all the Frieze week events, are there because of high-end art collectors. Grayson Perry
Artists have their very distinctive voices that theyve developed over a long period. It takes time to find your voice, your vocabulary of images, or whatever it is. Grayson Perry
We live in a media saturated world. I’m sure artists of the past would have dealt with it in just the same way. If you’re in the business of communication and images, then if you ignore the media-sphere you’re just cutting off your own foot. It’s just daft. Grayson Perry
My mother is a strong person. She’s funny but volatile, with a pretty bad temper. Grayson Perry
I’m suspicious when I go to someone’s house and everything is beautiful and perfect. Authenticity often means mistakes. Grayson Perry
We learned how to look at art from religion. Grayson Perry
If you stick to your dream script, you will have a boring and meaningless life. Grayson Perry
I never held myself as a nice person for most of my life. Grayson Perry
Security and care of the objects is paramount. Arty composition comes after everything is safe from greasy fingers, humidity or excess light. Grayson Perry
My tapestries are woven on a computer-controlled loom. I design them on Photoshop. I recently did some digitally-routed woodcuts because I wanted the woodcut look, but I didn’t want to get the chisels out. Grayson Perry
Many office workers loathe dress-down Fridays because they can no longer hide behind a suit. They might have to expose something of their messy selves through their ‘casual’ clothes. Grayson Perry
From birth until I went to art college when I was 19, there are perhaps less than a dozen photographs of me. Grayson Perry
I think people mistakenly get their chaos muddled up with their creativity. Provided you know what your issues are, they’re not going to go away. Grayson Perry
If Id had a happy childhood I definitely wouldnt have become the person I am – although a bad childhood isnt a recipe for being a creative person. There are many people in the arts who come from perfectly happy, middle-class homes. Grayson Perry
If youre sure that everything youre going to do is going to be good, then whats the point? I used to think of it as just crippling self-doubt. Now I kind of see it as a sign that Im teetering on the edge of something new. Or troubling. Grayson Perry
I think Im addicted to periods of doubt and low confidence. I think you should worry if you dont have them because then youre not trying hard enough. Grayson Perry
There are some very unsavoury aspects of art dealing that go with the unregulated nature of the market but its all part of the glamour. Glamour always has an unsavoury edge. I dont want to come across as preachy. Grayson Perry
Often men dont even realise theyre sad. Boys are brought up to unconsciously feel they would be breaking their man contract if they were to cry too much. Grayson Perry
I think its dangerous when people think theyre being expressive. Yuck. Its like people who say theyre spiritual, innit. You make the work you want to make, and you get on with it and hopefully it connects with other people. Grayson Perry
Well it’s interesting because we use the word brand in a very derogatory way a lot of the time. I do it as much as anyone. But i think a brand is also sort of like momentum; it gets you through the bad patches if you’ve got a good brand. Grayson Perry
I was in therapy for six years and then stopped. You get hardwired at adolescence, like a caterpillar that pupates and re-assembles itself as an insect. It’s very hard to change after that. Grayson Perry
And it’s been one of my big sort of campaigns throughout my career, really, is to sort of make art accessible but without dumbing it down. You know, art – the more you know about it, the more you enjoy it. Grayson Perry
Success in the art world means getting invitations to exhibit in some great places. I had shown in contemporary art museums in Europe, America, New Zealand and Japan. I’d also been asked to curate shows, and had made work to go with my selections from historical collections. Grayson Perry
I’ve always liked working with an archetypal design, something functional. Grayson Perry
Fashion is a language, and therefore says something about politics, and certain fashion styles get associated with certain political standpoints. Grayson Perry
The preparations for my very first exhibition in 1984 consisted of banging a line of nails in roughly the right place and hanging plates on them. I don’t think a tape measure or a spirit level was involved and the whole process took less time than the session in the pub afterwards. Grayson Perry
I haven’t been to Oxbridge. I haven’t even been to a London art school. My qualifications are pretty meagre for such a brief, but I just trust in my sense of what I’m interested in and my mission of clarity. Grayson Perry
I realised that identity always seemed to be an issue when it was challenged – thats when it seemed to be most in 3D, so that you could look at it. Grayson Perry
When mobile phones came out, they were a status symbol. Now the status symbol is having someone to manage your mobile phone for you. Grayson Perry
I have a knack for winning prizes; it must be something Ive done! Grayson Perry
Of course, I worry about being fashionable, although when you’re fashionable you’re already on the track to being unfashionable. Grayson Perry
Im interested in those things that hover in our unconsciousnesses – class, gender, identity – until we have to think about them for whatever reason. So normal is whatevers normal for you, until its not. Grayson Perry
I enjoyed the thought that hovering behind my work is a unifying belief system, just as there is behind Egyptian or Ancient Greek art. It just happens that the person who thought up the belief system behind my work is still around – ie, me. Grayson Perry
I’ve always gone out with women who made me laugh. Grayson Perry
I was sort of mute when I went to art school. There were two girls there who thought I was German because I only grunted. Grayson Perry
I had an affair with an older woman when I was at college, and she was a strong feminist, which shaped my view of women. I learned that they could call the shots, which was fine with me. Grayson Perry
Culture is a collaborative exercise, and I think everybody will do their bit to help it grow. Grayson Perry
It’s interesting that female artists are underrepresented in exhibitions. That may be down to the fact that the people in power in the art world are men. Grayson Perry
You cant be an artist without going to art school. Its impossible. Art schools like being plunged into a sheep dip that inoculates you against cliches. It gives you a sensibility you need to get into the art world. Grayson Perry
I’ve got a pot in my studio that is just a bitter rant against the art world. I call it my Dorian Gray. Grayson Perry
Im as masculine as the next man – get me on the mountain bike and Im vicious. Grayson Perry
Nothing frustrates me about the art world. It is a lovely place. There are many daft things that amuse me about it though. Grayson Perry
I operate on anger quite a lot. Its what gets me up in the morning to make art quite often. Well, irritation at least. Grayson Perry
I hate to tell this to people but most gods were invented by someone. I’m sorry. It’s just that I’m in the present, whereas the famous gods were invented by someone a long time ago. Grayson Perry
Anything can be art but very little is good art. Grayson Perry
Being vulnerable is the absolute key to having good relationships. And good relationships are the key to being happy. Grayson Perry
Im a maximalist, so Im probably not very elegant. My art is not a coup de grce. Its a war of attrition. Grayson Perry
I embrace the middle ground, because curiously it has more edge to it than the cutting edge. It has been a weirdly neglected path for the audience of contemporary art. Im making art not for people who dont like art, but for people who are interested but maybe alienated by the more esoteric pieces. Grayson Perry
Im quite self-serving so, while going round a degree show, what I really want to find out is whats going on in the world today, particularly as technology has widened the chasm between generations. Grayson Perry
Art is a process. Its expressing yourself and doing something, and throwing yourself into it and getting better at it and trying again. Thats what its about. Grayson Perry
You don’t work in a vacuum. If you’re a visual artist you work in a visual culture. If you’re a pop musician you listen to pop music. If you’re an artist you should know about the art world. Grayson Perry
Road rage is my vice. Im a cyclist and motorcyclist, and people who dont indicate drive me nuts. Grayson Perry
I think that democracy has a lowest common denominator thing going on, so it might be the best of a bad bunch of political systems; but as a way of making art, actually, its not always that great, because it boils everything down. Grayson Perry
In the art world, originality is seen as a precious commodity and its increasingly difficult to get because the territory of art is so trampled. Grayson Perry
Pottery was what sandal-wearing, windchime-lovers did. Art is sensitive to areas of visual culture that havent yet been colonised by the art world, and perhaps what they sensed back then was, here was an area that hadnt been fully explored. Grayson Perry
We have this idea that seriousness is of higher value. But surely there is more human pleasure and delight in time spent with humour than with pondering the great philosophical ideas. Grayson Perry
I did a psychotherapy day once, about class, and the first thing they did was get us to talk about our names. Of course, me, being called Grayson, everybody thinks its somehow unusual and classy. No, its bang-on aspirational working class. Grayson Perry
My great overall skill is spontaneity and winging it! Grayson Perry
Im a fan of the restaurant where they only have one thing and maybe a vegetarian option. You get what you are given. Grayson Perry
I think of colour sense as the visual equivalent of perfect pitch. Some people can just reach into a pile of swatches and say that looks nice with that. Grayson Perry
Drawing will never go out of date because, you know, you’ve still got to have the imaginative thought. You’ve got to react to the world in the present and do a drawing. Grayson Perry
When we talk of identity, we often think of groups such as black Muslim lesbians in wheelchairs. This is because identity only seems to become an issue when it is challenged or under threat. Grayson Perry
I like skateboarding because it’s backyard danger. You don’t need to go on an alpine holiday to get thrills. Grayson Perry
As an artist I’m very aware of what I call Picasso-napkin syndrome – I’ve got this 20th century version of the midas touch, where if I do a little doodle it’s worth money! Grayson Perry
Fashion is a way to orchestrate the spectacle of ideas. You can get someone who is fashionable but not terribly stylish, and the other way round. Grayson Perry
I was once judging some prisoner art, and you wouldnt believe the number of eagles and tigers and symbols of freedom and wildness that came up. It was a really strong trope. Grayson Perry
My job is to make meaning. To make meaning in a meaningless world. Grayson Perry
