From the Forward by Sir Christopher FraylingThis portrait of the visual artist as a young man takes us on a journey of self-discovery from Nottingham College of Arts & Crafts in 1963, via Wolverhampton College of Art to Goldsmiths’ and the SladeMoreFrom the Forward by Sir Christopher FraylingThis portrait of the visual artist as a young man takes us on a journey of self-discovery from Nottingham College of Arts & Crafts in 1963, via Wolverhampton College of Art to Goldsmiths’ and the Slade in London, a bit of Performance Art and part-time teaching, and finally to an installation at the Institute of Contemporary Arts and a prize at the 1970 ‘Young Contemporaries’ exhibition at the Royal Academy.
It is a journey, from a gifted and self-critical student’s point of view, through four art schools at a time of radical transformation (‘ was it really a golden age?’ He asks), a series of ruminations on the wider significance of Art Education , an unusual take on the Swinging Sixties (‘ How can I drop out when I haven’t dropped in yet?’) and above all a personal journey: a shy boy with a Newark accent and an unfortunate Billy Fury hairstyle gradually realises he must re-construct himself as an articulate and stylish conceptual sculptor who is at home on the London art scene and at ease with its great and good: in the process he learns what it means to be a professional artist.
(Kindle Locations 87-91). Vaughan Grylls. Kindle Edition.