David Shrigley has been announced as guest director of the 2018 Brighton Festival. The Turner Prize nominated artist has, in recent years, managed to combine critical and art establishment success with a significant and particularly loyal popular following. His wilfully lo-fi ink drawings puncture the ridiculousness of modern life – while his recent sculpture of a giant phallic upturned thumb currently sits on the Fourth Plinth in Trafalgar Square, gently mocking Nelson.
Macclesfield-born Shrigley recently relocated to Brighton, making him an ideal choice for guest director. Having collaborated, too, with musicians like Deerhoof, Blur, Grizzly Bear and David Byrne, Shrigley’s festival looks certain to feature a particularly strong, hand-picked musical line-up. We can also look forward to seeing some of the artist’s own surreal creations around town. “What I’m looking forward to about the role,” he explains, “is having the opportunity to not only see a lot of stuff and programme stuff but also make some artwork myself and have it presented in the place where I live.”
A handful of events have been previewed today on the Brighton Festival website, with the announcement of the full line-up due to follow on Feb 15th 2018.
