Guy Tarrant
Encyclopedia
Guy Tarrant is a contemporary artist
from London
, England
. He works with found art
and has exhibited articles related to schoolchildren's vandalism.
in 1991 and later training to become a teacher Tarrant began to draw on his experiences within the education system. In his touring exhibition, God Save The Pupils Tarrant and artist Mercedes Phillips exhibited various found art
objects confiscated from school
children. These included unusual homemade weaponry, fashion items, defaced textbooks, toys and drugs. Other items in the show included a whisky
bottle filled with urine
which was given to a teacher as a leaving present, as well as various graffitied and vandalised school desks and doors.
The show involved liaisons with over 300 different London schools. It was exhibited at The Stephen Lawerence Gallery in Greenwich
and the Dean Clough Gallery in Halifax, West Yorkshire
.
Tarrant is also involved with community art
and has worked on art projects with the mental health arts group Centerpieces. As Centrepieces project leader, he has received several art awards.
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...
from London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, England
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...
. He works with found art
Found art
The term found art—more commonly found object or readymade—describes art created from undisguised, but often modified, objects that are not normally considered art, often because they already have a non-art function...
and has exhibited articles related to schoolchildren's vandalism.
Life and work
Guy Tarrant began making artworks in 1987. After graduating from Sheffield Hallam UniversitySheffield Hallam University
Sheffield Hallam University is a higher education institution in South Yorkshire, England, based on two sites in Sheffield. City Campus is located in the city centre, close to Sheffield railway station, and Collegiate Crescent Campus is about two miles away, adjacent to Ecclesall Road in...
in 1991 and later training to become a teacher Tarrant began to draw on his experiences within the education system. In his touring exhibition, God Save The Pupils Tarrant and artist Mercedes Phillips exhibited various found art
Found art
The term found art—more commonly found object or readymade—describes art created from undisguised, but often modified, objects that are not normally considered art, often because they already have a non-art function...
objects confiscated from school
School
A school is an institution designed for the teaching of students under the direction of teachers. Most countries have systems of formal education, which is commonly compulsory. In these systems, students progress through a series of schools...
children. These included unusual homemade weaponry, fashion items, defaced textbooks, toys and drugs. Other items in the show included a whisky
Whisky
Whisky or whiskey is a type of distilled alcoholic beverage made from fermented grain mash. Different grains are used for different varieties, including barley, malted barley, rye, malted rye, wheat, and corn...
bottle filled with urine
Urine
Urine is a typically sterile liquid by-product of the body that is secreted by the kidneys through a process called urination and excreted through the urethra. Cellular metabolism generates numerous by-products, many rich in nitrogen, that require elimination from the bloodstream...
which was given to a teacher as a leaving present, as well as various graffitied and vandalised school desks and doors.
The show involved liaisons with over 300 different London schools. It was exhibited at The Stephen Lawerence Gallery in Greenwich
Greenwich
Greenwich is a district of south London, England, located in the London Borough of Greenwich.Greenwich is best known for its maritime history and for giving its name to the Greenwich Meridian and Greenwich Mean Time...
and the Dean Clough Gallery in Halifax, West Yorkshire
Halifax, West Yorkshire
Halifax is a minster town, within the Metropolitan Borough of Calderdale in West Yorkshire, England. It has an urban area population of 82,056 in the 2001 Census. It is well-known as a centre of England's woollen manufacture from the 15th century onward, originally dealing through the Halifax Piece...
.
Tarrant is also involved with community art
Community art
Community Art could be loosely defined as a way of creating art in which professional artists collaborate more or less intensively with people who don't normally actively engage in the arts. Community arts, also sometimes known as "dialogical art", "community-engaged" or "community-based art,"...
and has worked on art projects with the mental health arts group Centerpieces. As Centrepieces project leader, he has received several art awards.