Notes from watching 'Grayson Perry and the Tomb of the Unknown Craftsman'

Notes I took while watching 'Grayson Perry and the Tomb of the Unknown Craftsman'

which is available on BBC iPlayer at the moment.

Most of the things in the British Museum were made by anonymous craftsman.
2003 won turner prize
transvestite Claire
BM place of pilgrimage, temple


Increasingly dissatisfied with the context of contemporary art


Likes BM full of special things


Exhibition has been taking shape in Grayson's head for years


Sketchbooks are most of his work


Idea was to have BM as Tibetan monastery and a pilgrimage leads up to it.


Building Tomb of Unknown Craftsman. What is the exhibition at BM, it is the contents of a tomb
Ship being an Arc of Crafts manship, carry in to the future.


Tomb for his father, man who who could do DIY, idealised idea of fahter.
When Perry was five, his Mother had an affair with the milk man. His father left when he was six. Grayson remembers his father's shed of tools and motorbike leant up against the wall.


Liked Motor bikes all his life. so built a custom bike. He didn't have skills to build one so designed one and had one built. Status symbol. Main reason for bike is Alan Measles.


Alan Measles is teddy bear. his personal deity. see him as the leader of his temple. top leader in his imaginary universe.


He is a carrier of goodness and maleness.


See AM as God and thinks cuddly toys and God have a lot in common.


Grayson grew up in suburban Essex lived with step father, he disliked. As a child he would with drew into a fantasy, world playing games with AM


AM remains of the heart of Perry's imaginary world to this day.


Wanted to put a Tomb Guardian so made a scary looking AM.


He likes stuff. His own mythology with Alan.


The fantasy scenarios young Grayson played out with Alan Measles. were war games, which pitted boy and bear against a brutal army of invading German soldiers.


Went on a trip to Germany with AM to say sorry to the games Grayson used to play. Mission of appeasement round Germany.


Wants to take art out of a gallery, art isn't seen as art unless it is in a gallery.


Likes the thought of Shrines.
Like Folke costumes.


Weirdest bit in the show was at the end where Grayson went to the Stief Museum.


Alan was only artifact of his childhood, no photos

Louise Macintosh-Watson and Jenn Adamson Research Notes

Louise is one of the most interesting batik artists I have found. Most batik artists I have found just like to draw pretty pictures, like Jenn Adamson, of things and patterns. Louise has a lot more contemporary style, with the colours she uses and scribbley style.

Louise Macintosh-Watson research

Notes about Regina Benson Research

Regina's batik pieces look a lot more interesting than other artists styles I have seen. I love the earthy colours that come into her work, with the technique. She uses a different materials from the traditional batiking method.

mark-making on silk, rayon, cotton and industrial polyesters. Her work frequently starts with a solid black cloth, from which she discharges the dye, utilizing soy wax and starch

paste resists; then she overdyes with natural, disperse and acid dyes and rusts the surface further with found objects and harvested iron oxide.  These markings are then over sewn,

Notes about Set Design Job Profile

From this I have learnt what skills I need to work the set design aspect of theatre design. I am going to look at some of the links at the bottom and if there is something interesting I will write about it on my blog.


"Other useful subjects include interior design, fine art, 3-D design and architecture."  I am going to look into these other aspects to look at in from another area and I think the interior design will help especially because of the measuring and room design.