Angus Fairhurst
Encyclopedia
Angus Fairhurst was an English
artist
working in installation, photography and video. He was one of the Young British Artists
(YBAs).
, Kent
. Having attended The Judd School
between 1978 and 1985, he studied at Canterbury Art College
1985-1986, and graduated in 1989 in Fine Art at Goldsmiths College, where he was in the same year as Damien Hirst
. In February 1988, Fairhurst organised a show of student work, which was a precursor to the Freeze
show largely organised by Hirst in July 1988 with sixteen other students from Goldsmith, including Fairhurst. Fairhurst and Hirst became close friends and collaborated on many projects. Fairhurst was also for several years the partner and sometime-collaborator of Sarah Lucas
.
Fairhurst's work was often characterised by visual distortion and practical jokes. In 1991, he did a piece in which he networked together the phones of leading contemporary art dealers in London so that they could only talk to each other – a witty and telling remark that the art world is often only interested in speaking to itself.
He worked in different media, including video
, photography and painting, and is noted for sculptures of gorillas.
Angus Fairhurst exhibited nationally and internationally after graduating from Goldsmiths. Exhibitions include Freeze and Some Went Mad and Some Ran Away, Brilliant! at the Walker Art Center
and Apocalypse at the Royal Academy
in 2001. A 2004 exhibition In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida was held at the Tate Gallery
with Hirst and Lucas.
Sir Nicholas Serota
, director of the Tate
gallery, said:
Fairhurst exhibited at Sadie Coles HQ
in London. On 29 March 2008, the final day of his third solo show at the gallery, he was found hanging from a tree in a remote Highland woodland near Bridge of Orchy
in Scotland, having taken his own life. He is survived by his mother and brother.
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
artist
Artist
An artist is a person engaged in one or more of any of a broad spectrum of activities related to creating art, practicing the arts and/or demonstrating an art. The common usage in both everyday speech and academic discourse is a practitioner in the visual arts only...
working in installation, photography and video. He was one of the Young British Artists
Young British Artists
Young British Artists or YBAs is the name given to a loose group of visual artists who first began to exhibit together in London, in 1988...
(YBAs).
Life and work
Angus Fairhurst was born in PemburyPembury
Pembury is a large village in Kent, in the south east of England, with a population of around 6,000. It lies just to the north-east of Tunbridge Wells.The village centre, including the village green and High Street area is a conservation area.-History:...
, Kent
Kent
Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...
. Having attended The Judd School
The Judd School
The Judd School is a state secondary school in Tonbridge, Kent, southeast England. It was established in 1888 at Stafford House on East Street in Tonbridge, where it remained for eight years before moving to its present location on Brook Street, in the south of the town...
between 1978 and 1985, he studied at Canterbury Art College
Kent Institute of Art & Design
The Kent Institute of Art & Design was an art school based across three campuses in the county of Kent, in the United Kingdom. It was formed by the amalgamation of three independent colleges: Canterbury College of Art, Maidstone College of Art and Rochester College of Art...
1985-1986, and graduated in 1989 in Fine Art at Goldsmiths College, where he was in the same year as Damien Hirst
Damien Hirst
Damien Steven Hirst is an English artist, entrepreneur and art collector. He is the most prominent member of the group known as the Young British Artists , who dominated the art scene in Britain during the 1990s. He is internationally renowned, and is reportedly Britain's richest living artist,...
. In February 1988, Fairhurst organised a show of student work, which was a precursor to the Freeze
Freeze (exhibition)
Freeze is the title of an art exhibition that took place in July 1988 in an empty London Port Authority building at Surrey Docks in London Docklands. Its main organiser was Damien Hirst. It was significant in the subsequent development of the Young British Artists.-Organisation:Freeze was...
show largely organised by Hirst in July 1988 with sixteen other students from Goldsmith, including Fairhurst. Fairhurst and Hirst became close friends and collaborated on many projects. Fairhurst was also for several years the partner and sometime-collaborator of Sarah Lucas
Sarah Lucas
Sarah Lucas is an English artist. She is part of the generation of Young British Artists who emerged during the 1990s...
.
Fairhurst's work was often characterised by visual distortion and practical jokes. In 1991, he did a piece in which he networked together the phones of leading contemporary art dealers in London so that they could only talk to each other – a witty and telling remark that the art world is often only interested in speaking to itself.
He worked in different media, including video
Video art
Video art is a type of art which relies on moving pictures and comprises video and/or audio data. . Video art came into existence during the 1960s and 1970s, is still widely practiced and has given rise to the widespread use of video installations...
, photography and painting, and is noted for sculptures of gorillas.
Walker Art Center
The Walker Art Center is a contemporary art center in Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States. The Walker is considered one of the nation's "big five" museums for modern art along with the Museum of Modern Art, the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, the Guggenheim Museum and the Hirshhorn...
and Apocalypse at the Royal Academy
Royal Academy
The Royal Academy of Arts is an art institution based in Burlington House on Piccadilly, London. The Royal Academy of Arts has a unique position in being an independent, privately funded institution led by eminent artists and architects whose purpose is to promote the creation, enjoyment and...
in 2001. A 2004 exhibition In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida was held at the Tate Gallery
Tate Gallery
The Tate is an institution that houses the United Kingdom's national collection of British Art, and International Modern and Contemporary Art...
with Hirst and Lucas.
Sir Nicholas Serota
Nicholas Serota
Sir Nicholas Andrew Serota is a British art curator. Serota was director of the Whitechapel Gallery, London, and The Museum of Modern Art, Oxford, before becoming director of the Tate, the United Kingdom's national gallery of modern and British art in 1988. He was awarded a knighthood in 1999. He...
, director of the Tate
Tate
-Places:*Tate, Georgia, a town in the United States*Tate County, Mississippi, a county in the United States*Táté, the Hungarian name for Totoi village, Sântimbru Commune, Alba County, Romania*Tate, Filipino word for States...
gallery, said:
Fairhurst exhibited at Sadie Coles HQ
Sadie Coles HQ
Sadie Coles HQ is contemporary art gallery in London, England, owned and directed by Sadie Coles.Sadie Coles first worked as a gallery director for Anthony d'Offay....
in London. On 29 March 2008, the final day of his third solo show at the gallery, he was found hanging from a tree in a remote Highland woodland near Bridge of Orchy
Bridge of Orchy
Bridge of Orchy is a landmark hamlet in Argyll, Scotland.Dating back to 1751, it includes a notable tourist hotel. Located at the head of Glen Orchy, it is on the A82 road, has a railway station and is on the West Highland Way long distance path. Nearby prominent peaks include the munros Beinn...
in Scotland, having taken his own life. He is survived by his mother and brother.
Literature
- Angus Fairhurst, Sacha Craddock, James Cahill (foreword by Nicholas Serota), (London: Philip Wilson Publishers, 2009)