Mark D

Last updated

Mark D
Photograph of Mark D.jpg
Born
Mark Randall
NationalityBritish
Known forPainting
Movement Stuckism

Mark D, born Mark Randall, [1] is a British punk musician (guitarist and songwriter). He is also associated with the Stuckist group of artists. Mark D was born and spent his childhood in Peterborough. He now lives in Nottingham.

Contents

Music

From university onwards, Mark D (D standing for "degenerate") played in various bands including the Fat Tulips, Confetti (when he was known as David), the Pleasure Heads (when he was known as Mark Randyhead), Oscar, Servalan and Sundress, and appeared on dozens of releases. He published and edited fanzines, including the underground C86 fanzine Two Pint Take Home. He is a co-owner of Heaven Records. [2]

The Fat Tulips were formed in 1987 and have been described as "incredibly skilled in the art of buzzing electric guitars, ferocious tempos, pristine pop melodies and lyrics that weren't nearly as sweet as they sounded at first listen." [3] The Fat Tulips broke up in the mid-1990s.

Painting

An interest in the music of Billy Childish led onto Childish's paintings, which he acquired, and subsequently also the work of other artists in the Stuckist group. He contacted two artists who had been exhibited by the Stuckists, Stella Vine and Gina Bold, both of whom refused to sell him work, because of his connection with Childish. Vine responded with an email, which said, "Go fuck yourself". [1] [2] He was encouraged and given advice by Stuckist co-founder, Charles Thomson, without whom Mark D said, "I could easily have given up on doing my own work." [4]

His paintings make visual and verbal comments on well-known figures in the art world, starting with Billy Childish, Tracey Emin, Stella Vine and Damien Hirst. He describes Emin as "without doubt a very talented artist whose work I greatly admire." [2]

Mark D's painting in the window of the Stuckist show, "Painting is the Medium of Yesterday", 2005. 2005 Painting is the Medium of Yesterday.jpg
Mark D's painting in the window of the Stuckist show, "Painting is the Medium of Yesterday", 2005.

Mark D first exhibited in September 2005 with the Stuckists at La Viande gallery, Shoreditch, in a show ''Painting Is the Medium of Yesterday"—Paul Myners CBE, Chairman of Tate Gallery, Chairman of Marks and Spencer, Chairman of Aspen Insurance, Chairman of Guardian Media, Director of Bank of England, Director of Bank of New York. A Show of Paintings by the Stuckists, as Refused by the Tate Gallery. Guaranteed 100% Free of Elephant Dung. [2]

Mark D. Victoria Beckham: America Doesn't Love Me. Mark D. Victoria Beckham.jpg
Mark D. Victoria Beckham: America Doesn't Love Me.

His solo show, Mark D and the Stuckists v Tracey Emin and Damien Hirst, was at the Art Organisation gallery in March 2007. It included a display of material about Stuckist demonstrations. [5] As well as his own paintings he showed paintings by other Stuckist artists from his collection, [2] which he jointly owns with his wife, Tully, and states is "the world's largest collection of Stuckist paintings". [6]

In February 2008, he staged a show of his paintings, which satirise Stella Vine's images of Princess Diana and Kate Moss, replacing the former with Victoria Beckham and showing Moss eating slugs. [1] The exhibition, held jointly with Abby Jackson at La Viande gallery in Shoreditch, London, was called Disney Heroines Committing Suicide. [7]

Some outstanding musicians have proved that all you need are 3 chords and a cheap guitar to come up with a classic. I find it much more interesting to listen to some low budget production record full of life and energy with lots of good ideas, (e.g. early Clash and Velvet Underground, The Vaselines, The White Stripes and, of course, Billy Childish with the Buff Medways etc.) than some over-produced bland pomp like Athlete, Coldplay or U2. [2]

Charles Thomson described his work as "brilliant punk paintings". [8]

See also

Mark D's painting on a placard during a Stuckists demonstration at Tate Britain, 6 December 2005. 2005 Stuckist Turner demo (2).jpg
Mark D's painting on a placard during a Stuckists demonstration at Tate Britain, 6 December 2005.

Related Research Articles

Stuckism International art movement

Stuckism is an international art movement founded in 1999 by Billy Childish and Charles Thomson to promote figurative painting as opposed to conceptual art. By May 2017 the initial group of 13 British artists had expanded to 236 groups in 52 countries.

Remodernism revives aspects of modernism, particularly in its early form, and follows postmodernism, to which it contrasts. Adherents of remodernism advocate it as a forward and radical, not reactionary, impetus.

Billy Childish Musical artist

Billy Childish is an English painter, author, poet, photographer, film maker, singer and guitarist. Since the late 1970s, Childish has been prolific in creating music, writing and visual art. He has led and played in bands including the Pop Rivets, Thee Milkshakes, Thee Headcoats, and the Musicians of the British Empire, primarily working in the genres of garage rock, punk and surf and releasing more than 100 albums.

Young British Artists Loose group of visual artists

The Young British Artists, or YBAs—also referred to as Brit artists and Britart—is a loose group of visual artists who first began to exhibit together in London in 1988. Many of the YBA artists graduated from the BA Fine Art course at Goldsmiths, in the late 1980s, whereas some from the group had trained at Royal College of Art.

Charles Thomson (artist) English artist, poet and photographer

Charles Thomson is an English artist, poet and photographer. In the early 1980s he was a member of The Medway Poets. In 1999 he named and co-founded the Stuckists art movement with Billy Childish. He has curated Stuckist shows, organised demonstrations against the Turner Prize, run an art gallery, stood for parliament and reported Charles Saatchi to the OFT. He is frequently quoted in the media as an opponent of conceptual art. He was briefly married to artist Stella Vine.

Stella Vine English artist

Stella Vine is an English artist, who lives and works in London. Her work is figurative painting with subject matter drawn from either her personal life of family, friends and school, or rock stars, royalty and celebrities. She has worked in various jobs, including as a waitress, stripper and cleaner.

The Medway Poets

The Medway Poets were founded in Medway, Kent, in 1979. They were an English punk based poetry performance group and later formed the core of the first Stuckists Art Group. The members were Miriam Carney, Billy Childish, Rob Earl, Bill Lewis, Sexton Ming and Charles Thomson. Others associated with the group include Philip Absolon, Sanchia Lewis and Tracey Emin. Most members also practised other art forms including music and painting.

Bill Lewis English painter

William Lewis is an English artist, story-teller, poet and mythographer. He was a founder-member of The Medway Poets and of the Stuckists art group.

<i>The Stuckists Punk Victorian</i> 2004 art exhibition in Liverpool, England

The Stuckists Punk Victorian was the first national gallery exhibition of Stuckist art. It was held at the Walker Art Gallery and Lady Lever Art Gallery in Liverpool from 18 September 2004 to 20 February 2005 and was part of the 2004 Liverpool Biennial.

Elsa Dax French painter

Elsa Dax is a French painter and a member of the Stuckists art movement. Major themes in her work are myth, legend and fairytale.

Stuckism in Australia

Stuckism is an art movement that began in London, England, in 1999. In 2000, Melbourne artist Regan Tamanui started the first international branch of the movement. As of 2010, there are seven Australian Stuckist groups, who have held shows—sometimes concurrently with UK activities—received coverage in the Australian press and on TV, and also been represented in UK shows. The Stuckists take a strong pro-painting and anti-conceptual art stance, and were co-founded by Charles Thomson and Billy Childish.

Stuckist demonstrations Art group activities

Stuckist demonstrations since 2000 have been a key part of the Stuckist art group's activities and have succeeded in giving them a high-profile both in Britain and abroad. Their primary agenda is the promotion of painting and opposition to conceptual art.

Stuckism in the United States

The Stuckism art movement was started in London in 1999 to promote figurative painting and oppose conceptual art. This was mentioned in the United States media, but the first Stuckist presence in US was not until the following year, when former installation artist, Susan Constanse, founded a Pittsburgh chapter.

Little Artists

The Little Artists are John Cake and Darren Neave. They create versions of well known contemporary artworks and art personalities in miniature using toy Lego bricks. They also produce a range of merchandise. They describe themselves as conceptual artists. Their work is collected by Charles Saatchi.

Neo-conceptual art

Neo-conceptual art describes art practices in the 1980s and particularly 1990s to date that derive from the conceptual art movement of the 1960s and 1970s. These subsequent initiatives have included the Moscow Conceptualists, United States neo-conceptualists such as Sherrie Levine and the Young British Artists, notably Damien Hirst and Tracey Emin in the United Kingdom, where there is also a Stuckism counter-movement and criticism from the 1970s conceptual art group Art and Language.

Abby Jackson British artist

Abby Jackson is a British artist, Stuckist painter, writer and art activist.

<i>Sir Nicholas Serota Makes an Acquisitions Decision</i>

Sir Nicholas Serota Makes an Acquisitions Decision is one of the paintings that was made as a part of the Stuckism art movement, and is recognized as a "signature piece" for the movement, It was painted by the Stuckism co-founder Charles Thomson in 2000, and has been exhibited in a number of shows since, as well as being featured on placards during Stuckist demonstrations against the Turner Prize.

Stuckism International Gallery

The Stuckism International Gallery was the gallery of the Stuckist art movement. It was open from 2002 to 2005 in Shoreditch, and was run by Charles Thomson, the co-founder of Stuckism. It was launched by a procession carrying a coffin marked "The death of conceptual art" to the neighbouring White Cube gallery.

A Gallery

The A Gallery was a contemporary art gallery in Wimbledon, London run by Fraser Kee Scott.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Deedes, Henry. "Vine's Stuckist rival sticks one on her at exhibition", The Independent , 13 February 2008. Retrieved 13 February 2008.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Mark D: Biog/text", stuckism.com. Retrieved 13 February 2008
  3. Caught in Flux no. 7, 1998 Archived 17 April 2006 at the Wayback Machine Retrieved 24 March 2006
  4. D, Mark; Thomson, Charles. "Paintings – Gina Bold". Archived from the original on 12 July 2007. Retrieved 19 June 2007.
  5. Zajac, Camilla (8 May 2007). "Stuckists at the Art Organisation". BBC. Retrieved 29 May 2007.
  6. "Mark D: Introduction", stuckism.com. Retrieved 13 February 2008.
  7. "Disney Heroines Committing Suicide" Archived 21 February 2006 at the Wayback Machine , La Viande. Retrieved 13 February 2008.
  8. Thomson, Charles. "Charles Thomson" in: Jeffreys, Tom. "London exhibitions" Archived 9 March 2010 at the Wayback Machine , Spoonfed Media, 19 December 2008. Retrieved 30 August 2010.