Michael Landy: Bin it for Britian

Michael Landy: Bin it for Britain

Thursday 30 July, 2015

In Bin it for Britain artist Michael Landy talks about the ways in which ideas of value, usefulness, productivity and labour have been central to his practice, beginning with his participation in the seminal 1988 YBA exhibition Freeze, through to his current work.

Landy’s conceptually and politically charged work varies from epic performances to meticulous drawings and collages and often involves finding new potential for objects with specific personal or cultural connotations. From his early investigation of the rhythms of market stall displays in the 1990’s, to his monumental installation Break Down in 2001, in which he systematically destroyed all of his possessions in a former department store, his work explores the everyday ways in which capitalism shapes our lives and identities.

Recent projects and exhibitions include: Breaking News, Galerie Sabine Knust, Munich, Germany, 2015; Saints Alive, Antiguo Colegio de San Ildefonso, Mexico City, Mexico, 2014; Michael Landy: Four Walls, Whitworth Art Gallery, Manchester, UK, 2013; Acts of Kindness, Art on the Underground, London, UK; Art World Portraits, National Portrait Gallery, London, UK, both 2011; and Art Bin, South London Gallery, London, UK, 2010.