Three wee questions for David Shrigley (2023)
Cornelius: It seems to me that anthropomorphized animals are a regular feature in your work. You put words in their mouths, beaks, snouts. Often the words can be read as criticism or despair in regards to the world. Is it that in your work animals get the chance to talk back at us humans?
David: My relationship with animals changed when I got a dog in 2012. The dog and I have a special bond perhaps enhanced because I don’t have any children. I stopped eating meat as a direct consequence of this. I went from giving my relationship with the animal world very little thought to suddenly having a profound concern for the lives of all animals. I don’t make art with the intention of delivering any particular message but the messages seem to appear nonetheless. One of the main messages seems to be ‘Fuck the Human Race’.
Cornelius: Throughout the years you have worked with a wide variety of materials including fabricated sculptures, neons. Most recently, "Pulped Fiction" project, you "recycled" Dan Brown's "Da Vinci Code" to print copies of George Orwell's "1984". Yet, I have the feeling that your drawings on paper are central to all of this?
David: Drawing became my main artistic activity when I left art school because I didn’t have the space or the means to work in any other material. Since then it has always been my default media. I can say things quickly and directly with a drawing. Spontaneity and intuition are easy when you make drawings. You are able to avoid contrivance in a way that is much more difficult with other media.
Cornelius: What kind of artistic project would you like to realise in the future? Is there something that has been on your mind for a while, that you have never done before?
David: I have often been asked this question over the years and I never seem to have any unrealised ideas. But at this moment there are a few things in my mind that I want to make. Perhaps this is because the success of my works on paper affords me some time and resources to make projects that don’t need to fit within an exhibition or a commission. The 1984 project was the first large project I have done on my own terms, funded entirely by myself. It made me realise that I can do whatever I want and I don’t have to wait for someone to propose something. I’ve become very interested in art, health and wellbeing and have come to realise art and the arts in general are important for our happiness. I helped set up a charity to this end during lockdown (Sidmouth School of Art) near where I live in Devon and it is something I’d like to expand upon. I thought about making an exhibition of my work in a school as a way of highlighting the importance of arts education at a time when it seems to be increasingly undervalued. I’m figuring it out and I’ll let you know how it goes.
C: Dear David, thank you!
(An email interview with David Shrigley in December 2023.)
