David Shrigley: Spotlight Artist of the Week.
It’s mid-November, and David Shrigley hasn’t stopped posting! If you follow him on Instagram you’ll have noticed the sudden surge of energy that erupted two weeks ago on his grid. Shrigley has previously demonstrated his political engagement through his art, so we can guess that the ongoing global events were the trigger for his creations, namely the second national lockdown in England, Brexit, the US elections, (the outcome), and the news of a possible Covid-19 vaccine.
Shrigley’s style is notoriously cartoonish and simplified. With almost all of his exhibitions postponed, he has taken to exhibiting his work immediately and with instant gratification from his followers on Instagram. His quick response to current events, and fast-paced style of working means that he is among one of the few artists who can release his work instantly on the social media platform.
But it’s not the first time that Shrigley has taken to producing a vast amount of art at an alarming rate. In June we saw him produce 400 black ink drawings while isolating in Devon during the first national lockdown. He’s not alone, artists such as Anselm Kiefer also claim to have thrived artistically during this pandemic.
Shrigley’s recent work in the last month has moved away from the black and white ink drawings and turned to include colour. His paintings are flat, bold and sometimes unsettlingly bizarre. They can be read at face-value, or interpreted as a reflection of the current climate. I have always suspected that Shrigley loves to dabble in drugs, but recently drugs have appeared as one of his main subjects, reflecting on the experience or post-experience, morality and legality of consuming copious amounts. His most recent post (below), was greeting with almost celebratory comments left by his followers.
In the past I’ve found Shrigley’s work to be somewhat off the wall, trying to decipher the cryptic message hidden in the form of a hammerhead shark. However during a global pandemic, his messages are loud and clear in a world which has completely lost it.
“…during a global pandemic, his messages are loud and clear in a world which has completely lost it.”
