Stuart Brisley (born in 1933 in Haslemere, England) is widely regarded as the godfather of British performance art. Brisley has been at the forefront of experimentation and political debate within the visual arts – performance artist, painter, writer, professor at the Slade School of Art. He has been an enduring influence on many of the present generation of young British artists and his radical practice has made an important contribution to the British art scene, playing a fundamental part in the development of installation and performance art. As Richard Gott pointed out in the introduction to the catalogue for Brisley's exhibition at the South London Gallery in 1996, ‘Homage to Brisley’s performances and installations and references to his work, can be found in many unexpected places and in the work of other artists.’
Brisley first achieved notoriety in the 1960s and ’70s and is perhaps best-known for his disturbing physical performances, but his work as an artist extends over four decades and has also embraced painting, print, sculpture and installation, films and fictions, and large-scale participatory projects. At the centre of this diverse work lies his exploration of the essential qualities of what it means to be human – he has challenged the human body in physical, psychological and emotional ways. Brisley has recently helped form the UK Museum of Ordure.
In his performance work, Brisley engages the audience and establishes a dialogue of action and reaction that induces a release from conventions of social behaviour. He has also examined the body politic and images of power; his paintings, prints and sculpture have expressed a literary and symbolic approach to power as represented in the media.
In 1968, Brisley helped lead the Hornsey Sit-in, in protest of teaching practices common at British Art schools. This protest helped him gain a reputation for challenging norms, and his appointment as professor of Media Fine Art Graduate Studies at the Slade School of Art, part of the University College London, was and remains unique in that he was the only staff member to be appointed by the students alone. In 1976, Brisley initiated an archive of the living memories of the inhabitants of Peterlee in County Durham, a project which has recently been revived with the help of fellow artist Tim Brennan.
Stuart Brisley is represented in numerous public collections in Britain, including Tate, the Arts Council of Great Britain and the Henry Moore Institute collection, Leeds Museums & Galleries. The 2006 exhibition at England & Co gallery in London, Stuart Brisley, Works 1958-2006, led to the acquisition in 2008 of five of his works dealing with political issues by the British Museum.
Stuart Brisley currently lives and works in Spitalfields in the East End of London.
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