For more information on this series of drawings, please email waitinglist@stuartsemple.com

Labels: drawings, stuart semple

Labels: Nick Gough, stuart semple, Studio Photos

Eric Bryant's fantastic essay takes us from Richard Hamilton's early statements on pop, to a generation that are using the same pop art devises to discuss the darker side of our existence. Eric introduces us to a group for whom suicide, fear and violence are all in a days work.

Read it HERE

Labels: artnews, dark pop, eric bryant, hamilton, interview, neo pop, pop art, pop is gagosian, stuart semple

Knuckles 3 and four ache, deep inside. I cracked them since long before I had hairs on my face to get rid of. The storm bought black puddles to rest outside my window. The humidity gave way to a breath of fresh air. I think the geese are going to migrate back to Canada.

Art used to be about survival, I put that pressure on it. Keep me alive, give me relevance. It did what it was asked to. Now’s my turn to give it a platform to do what it needs to do. Sometimes when I’m most scared I play the easy card, leaving a mark that I know will be understood. Sometimes I resist it going where it wants. I’m the one tethering it. If it’s a collection of objects that describe a human’s life, it has to be honest.

The world is warming up. That’s real. It’s a guarantee. Bombs can hide in baby’s bottles... Really? Our leaders swap woollen jumpers and party on yachts and in celebrity-borrowed homes. Who’s got their eye on the implementation of id cards. Lets scapegoat some immigrants. I demand evidence. I find it hard to trust you since you lied about weapons of mass destruction. Will I be condemned for praying to the wrong god? Carbon will kill us all. Where’s your bird flu gone? The weapons you are using are illegal. I will not see another culture destroyed for your version of democracy. Who raided indymedia and impounded their hard drives? Did you use your ‘anti terrorism act’ to seize my friends cd collection at a party? COME ON THEN… IF YOU THINK YOU’RE HARD ENOUGH!

Labels: stuart semple

There are two tiny blisters on my fingers. One's more sore than the other. Who'd take a bullet for me if it came down to it? I turn my things to the wall to avoid opinion. I watch francis bacon through dark glasses sweating in a big hat. The canal turns to oil. Deep dark and black. It's a gunk you can drown on. There were words that I admired, big ones that I aspired too. Note the past tense. Fay's been in the hospital, she'll be better soon. I don't think I'll cope when the summer fades. I was home alone. I ate half my dinner, it's an achievement... If you could buy anything what would you buy?... (love me xx)

Labels: stuart semple

High achievers are weird.

They can have extraordinary talents, yet sometimes be alluded by mundane day-to-day stuff. Stuart has a problem remembering his bank card. He left his business card at Sainsbury’s Deli counter the other day and today his Personal card was left at the studio when he made a trip out to see his sister. I had to get it biked to him in some Godforsaken part of Waterloo. Psych!

Labels: stuart semple

Today we went to a big, well known company. There was a lot of exposed brickwork and a signed Gorillaz poster on the wall, the staff were young and dynamic and everything looked the part. Stuart is the most successful artist of his generation; he is also very young. It felt weird looking at people maybe two, three years older than us who were totally formal and unflappable. For a while it felt pretty awkward; we weren’t speaking the same language. They never asked what Stuart wanted, they just told us about systems, and how they usually did things.

Everything about Stuart’s practice is extraordinary; it is not going to easily adapt to conventional methods, if at all. Somehow we reached an understanding and although the connection wasn’t immediate Stuart was impressed by their professionalism and focus. It was an important day.

Labels: stuart semple