Stuart Semple Explained

Stuart Semple
Birth Name:Stuart Buchanan Semple
Birth Date:1980 9, df=yes
Birth Place:Bournemouth, Dorset, England
Nationality:British
Children:1
Field:Painting
Movement:Pop Art, Contemporary Art
Training:Bournemouth and Poole College

Painting and Printmaking, Bretton Hall College: Fine Art

Patrons:Philip Niarchos, Langen Foundation, Getty Foundation

Stuart Buchanan Semple (born 12 September 1980) is a British artist and activist who works with sculpture and painting.[1] [2]

Life and career

Semple was born in Bournemouth, Dorset. He studied art and design at Bournemouth and Poole College, and painting and printmaking at Bretton Hall College in Yorkshire.[3] He first wanted to become an artist after his mother took him to see Van Gogh's Sunflowers at the age of 7.[4] [5] In 2000, after a life-threatening allergic reaction, he decided to pursue a career as an artist.[6] [7] He later referenced the electrocardiography flatline he experienced in a 2010 painting.

In 2002 he had his first major London solo exhibition, "Stolen Language – the art of Nancyboy", at the A&D Gallery.[8] [9] In 2009, he auctioned off Nancyboy-themed artworks to raise funds for the UK charity Mind, after his grandmother was diagnosed with schizophrenia.[10] [11] After the 2004 Momart warehouse fire, he was commissioned to create a memorial with the debris, titled Burn Baby Burn.[12] In 2005, Semple produced an exhibition in East London, titled Post Pop Paradise. Also that year he placed a painting he created at the Saatchi Gallery, avoiding security in doing so, as a protest against comments Charles Saatchi made.[13] [14] [15] [16]

In 2006 Semple's exhibition "Epiphany" at Martin Summers Fine Art in London questioned the role of religion in modern life[17] in a series of in-your-face paintings that alluded to popular culture, graphic media, advertising and social issues.[18]

Stuart began posting drawings he created on eBay in 1999.[19] [20] In 2012, he published an extended play on iTunes featuring paintings and a short film.[21] In 2013, he created Jump, a 10 by 10m bouncy cloud trampoline, for Australia's Federation Square's public art programme.[22] In 2014, his exhibition "Anxiety Generation" was featured in Tatler magazine.[23] That same year, he joined talent agency Next Management.[24] He has also been featured on the BBC,[25] [26] [27] and has spoken at the Institute of Contemporary Arts[28] and Amnesty International.[29]

In 2004, art dealer Anthony d'Offay flew Semple's portfolio to be shown in New York City.[30] A 2007 solo exhibition saw $1 million sales within the first five minutes.[31] In 2013, a London exhibition had presales to a charitable foundation of $1 million.[32] That same year, he was featured in The Guardian's list of Ten Best Art Auctions.[33] In 2015, he created a colouring book for adults raise funds for Mind.[34]

Business ventures

In 2016, Semple came into conflict with the artist Anish Kapoor when Kapoor purchased exclusive artistic rights to the super-black material Vantablack.[35] He released a paint titled "PINK – the world's pinkest pink paint", banning Kapoor from purchasing the paint.[36] [37]

In 2021, Semple released a pigment called TIFF Blue, aiming to "democratise" Tiffany Blue, a shade of blue trademarked by Tiffany & Co.[38] The same year, he also released a pigment called Incredibly Kleinish Blue with a similar intention of democratising International Klein Blue, which is patented by Yves Klein.[39] [40] In 2023, Semple released a pigment called Pinkie, aiming to democratise Barbie Pink.[41] [42] Freetone (or Sempletone) is an Adobe plugin, created by Semple in 2022 in response to the licensing fallout between Pantone and Adobe Inc.[43] [44] Freetone is a collection of 1,280 colours that mimic the Pantone colour palette with a similar set of number codes.[45] [46] Semple barred any employees and associates of Adobe or Pantone from buying, using or downloading Freetone.[47]

Activism

Semple has supported Amnesty International and has created artworks for the Freedom of Expression Campaign.[48]

In 2011, Semple was made an ambassador for mental health charity Mind.[49] He initiated the Creative Therapies fund within the organisation which he launched with Stephen Fry and Melvyn Bragg and curated the exhibition "Mindful",[50] which included works from Jake & Dinos Chapman, Mat Collishaw, Tracey Emin, Mona Hatoum, Sarah Lucas and Sebastian Horsley.[51] He has since launched a number of fundraising art projects for Mind.[52] [53] [54] The Creative Therapies fund backs mental health projects in the United Kingdom. [55] [56]

He has also advocated for artists' rights in the United Kingdom,[57] [58] humanitarian aid,[59] [60] [61] and world peace.[62] [63] [64]

Artworks

!Title!Year!Location!Ref
Fake Plastic Love2007London
Everlasting Nothing Less2009London, Milan[65]
Happy Clouds2009–2014London, Dublin, Moscow[66] [67]
Happy Housec. 2010[68] [69]
It's Hard To Be A Saint In This Cityc. 2012[70]
Suspend Disbelief2013[71] [72] [73]
My Sonic Youth2015Los Angeles[74]
Something Amazing2016United Kingdom[75]

Curatorial projects

In 2007, Semple co-curated and featured in the 'Black Market' at the Anna Kustera gallery in New York with Just Another Rich Kid.[76] Semple curated exhibitions "Mash Ups, post pop fragments and détournements" at The Kowalsky Gallery in 2008 for the Design and Artists Copyright Society[77] [78] and 'London Loves The Way Things Fall Apart' (2009) and "This Is England" (2011) for Galleria Aus18, Milan.[79]

Semple curated "This Is England" (2010) initially held at The Aubin Gallery (which he directed in association with Aubin & Wills and Shoreditch House) featuring artists Sarah Maple, Nicky Carvell, David Hancock and Richard Galloway which then toured to Milan.[80]

In 2011 Semple curated the Mindful exhibition in the Old Vic Tunnels featuring artists including Jake and Dinos Chapman, Tracey Emin, Mona Hatoum, Mat Collishaw, Sebastian Horsley, Sarah Lucas, Barney Bubbles, Liliane Lijn, Tessa Farmer and Semple. It coincided with a gala dinner at The Imperial War Museum hosted by Stephen Fry and Lord Melvyn Bragg to raise funds for the Mind creative therapies fund.[81] [82]

External links

Notes and References

  1. Hayes, David (2013).Financial Times 'Personal style: Stuart Semple', "Financial Times", October 2014. Retrieved 27 May 2014.
  2. Fairweather, Shona (2007). Aesthetica Magazine "Stuart Semple 80s Influences & Popular Youth Culture", "Aesthetica Magazine", October 2007. Retrieved 1 June 2014.
  3. http://wwwnotes2.leeds.ac.uk/cuttings.nsf/ca19a58d66951b21802570980070beb6/fbd863ad29762d2980256ed600341316?OpenDocument "Bretton Hall press section"
  4. Smith, Dominic (2011). "Interview: Stuart Semple", "Soundsphere",16 July 2011. Retrieved 10 January 2015.
  5. Agnew Mary (2012)"Stuart Semple on How It's Hard to be a Saint in the City" "ARTINFO China", 17 February 2012. Retrieved 31 January 2015.
  6. Jeffreys, Tom (2011) "Mental Health and Art as Therapy – an interview with Stuart Semple", "Spoonfed", 6 September 2011. Retrieved 10 September 2011.
  7. http://www.mind.org.uk/information-support/your-stories/talking-about-mental-health-with-stuart-semple/#.U4SUfZRdVg8 "Talking about mental health with Stuart Semple"
  8. Finney, (2012) "Sewing seeds – Artist Stuart Semple on his collaboration with Aubin & Wills", "Marylebone Journal", December 2012. Retrieved 10 January 2015.
  9. http://www.aanddgallery.com/pages/history.html# A&D exhibition list
  10. Dunne, Aidan (2014) "Stuart Semple, Cloudy with a chance of artistic smiley faces", "The Irish Times", 6 January 2014. Retrieved 13 May 2014.
  11. http://www.voltcafe.com/blog/keep-it-semple Volt Magazine "Keep It Semple"
  12. Edwardes, Charlotte (2004). Daily Telegraph "New art rises from wreckage of warehouse," Daily Telegraph, 18 July 2004. Retrieved 2 July 2007.
  13. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/arts/4653189.stm "Artist protests at Saatchi show"
  14. Reynolds, Nigel (2005). Daily Telegraph "Saatchi rumbles protest painting", Daily Telegraph, 6 July 2005. Retrieved 2 July 2007.
  15. http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article540743.ece "Artist protests at Saatchi show,"
  16. Leitch, Luke. "Brit painter in protest at 'banned' Saatchi art", Evening Standard, 5 July 2005.
  17. http://stuartsemple.com/press/popupz/artnewspaperon.html "What's On"
  18. Gleadell, Colin (2006). "Market news: Mark Rothko, Tyeb Mehta and more...", Daily Telegraph, 4 April 2006. Retrieved 2 July 2007.
  19. Federico, Cherie (2010) Aesthetica Magazine "Stuart Semple Popular Culture and the Aesthetic Discourse" "Aesthetica Magazine" 1 April 2010. Retrieved 1 July 2014.
  20. Mills, Jack (2012)."STUART SEMPLE: Post Adolescent Idealistic Phase", "Wonderland Magazine", 14 June 2012. Retrieved 27 May 2014.
  21. https://www.ica.org.uk/video/culture-now-stuart-semple-conversation-josh-spero "Culture Now: Stuart Semple in Conversation with Josh Spero"
  22. Web site: JUMP - Federation Square . www.fedsquare.com.
  23. http://www.tatler.com/bystander/events/2014/november/stuart-semples-private-view#!/15675/image/1 "Stuart Semple's private view"
  24. Ruiz, Cristina (2013). "Move over galleries: artists sign with agents – Stuart Semple joins an agency" Art Newspaper, February 2013. Retrieved 8 May 2014.
  25. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ueA3YLs_6Dc "Stuart Semple Blue Peter Happy Clouds"
  26. http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b016byvh "Matt, Beth, Tim and Ashby are four GCSE Art students from Essex. Brit artist Stuart Semple visits their school to see how they turn their ideas into great pieces of art."
  27. http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p01z4mz0 "Stuart Semple – Introduction"
  28. http://joshspero.com/2013/11/27/stuart-semple-interviewed-by-josh-spero-at-the-ica/ "Stuart Semple Interviewed by Josh Spero at The ICA"
  29. Web site: Making Noise For Mental Health Tonight . https://web.archive.org/web/20140624022146/http://amnesty.ie/news/making-noise-mental-health-tonight . 24 June 2014 . Amnesty.ie.
  30. Buck, Louisa (2004). "Bending The Momart Wreckage", The Art Newspaper, September 2004. Retrieved 24 May 2008.
  31. Hoggard, Liz, (2010) "Stuart Semple 'I'm Afraid To Swallow'", Evening Standard, 28 April 2010. Retrieved 1 May 2010.
  32. Westall, Mark (2013)., "FAD", October 2013. Retrieved 8 May 2014.
  33. Hazelton, Claire (2013)."The 10 Best Art Auctions" "The Guardian", 25 May 2013. Retrieved 1 June 2014.
  34. Semple, Stuart (2015) "My Happy Colouring Flip Book", Amazon.co.uk, 2 July 2015.
  35. News: 'You could disappear into it': Anish Kapoor on his exclusive rights to the 'blackest black'. Brigid. Delaney. The Guardian . 26 September 2016. www.theguardian.com.
  36. Web site: 27 December 2016 . The war over the world's pinkest pink is getting ridiculous . subscription . live . https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220525/https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/art/news/anish-kapoor-pinkest-pink-blackest-black-paint-war-a7497751.html . 25 May 2022 . The Independent.
  37. Web site: Dazed . 13 February 2017 . Artist takes on Anish Kapoor with 'Better Black' paint . Dazed.
  38. Web site: Wilson . Mark . Tiffany has guarded its iconic blue color for decades. Now, anyone can buy it . Fast Company . 15 October 2023.
  39. Web site: INCREDIBLY KLEINISH BLUE ACRYLIC PAINT. Culture Hustle USA. en. 2023-01-03.
  40. Web site: 2021-05-26 . Not Calvin, not Yves – Easy Klein is the latest pigment to democratise colour from artist Stuart Semple . 2023-10-15 . Creative Boom . en.
  41. News: Avi-Yonah . Shera . 2023-07-24 . He's tried to 'liberate' colors for years. His latest: the 'Barbiest pink.' . en-US . Washington Post . 2023-10-15 . 0190-8286.
  42. Web site: Cascone . Sarah . 2023-07-17 . Artist Stuart Semple Is Releasing a 'Barbie-Ish,' Ultra-Fluorescent Pink Paint to Protest Mattel's Trademark on the Color . 2023-10-15 . Artnet News . en-US.
  43. Stokel-Walker . Chris . Adobe Just Held a Bunch of Colors Hostage . Wired . en-US . 1059-1028 . 2023-08-13.
  44. Web site: FREETONE - Pantone-ish colour palette for Adobe products by Stuart Semple . 2024-05-24 . Culture Hustle . en.
  45. Web site: DeFisher . Alison . 2022-12-12 . Pantone colors have disappeared in Adobe . 2023-08-13 . Stride Creative Group . en-US.
  46. Web site: Pantone alternatives mooted . 2023-08-13 . Printweek . 7 November 2022 . en.
  47. Web site: List . Jenny . 2022-11-16 . Interview: Stuart Semple On Pantone, Freetone, Colour, And Open Source . 2023-08-13 . Hackaday . en-US.
  48. HIRSCHMILLER, STEPHANIE (2011) "WRITE ON! Artist Stuart Semple does it in a Box(park) for Amnesty International" Harpers Bazaar 4 December 2011. Retrieved 10 August 2014.
  49. http://www.mind.org.uk/news/5619_britain_s_top_artists_rally_together_for_mind_fundraising_exhibition "Mind news section"
  50. http://mindfulofart.com/
  51. Gosling, Emily (2011) "Semple Minds", "Design Week", 31 August 2011. Retrieved 25 October 2011.
  52. Khan, Karim (2013). "THE INTERVIEW: STUART SEMPLE", Hunger, 28 February 2013. Retrieved from Hunger.tv 10 June 2013.
  53. Web site: Get Involved - Mind, the mental health charity - help for mental health problems. www.mind.org.uk.
  54. http://www.designweek.co.uk/we-like/time-to-talk-stuart-semples-designs-for-mental-health/3037064.article "Time to Talk – Stuart Semple's designs for mental health"
  55. http://www.mind.org.uk/information-support/your-stories/talking-about-mental-health-with-stuart-semple/#.VMilM2Tkeds Mind "Talking about mental health with Stuart Semple"
  56. http://www.mind.org.uk/get_involved/creative_therapy_campaign "The Creative Therapies Fund"
  57. Web site: "dacs.org.uk" Debate on the Future Economy of Art .
  58. Hutchinson, Jack (2012) "Is anything wrong with the Artist's Resale Right?", "a-n.co.uk"
  59. Hazelton, Claire (2011) Flux Magazine "Freedom from Torture: The Art Auction – Interview with Stuart Semple" 18 November 2011. Retrieved 8 August 2014.
  60. Morrison, Sarah (2011) "Britain's Art Pack Does It's Bit To Help", The Independent. 27 November 2011. Retrieved 10 August 2014.
  61. https://paddle8.com/work/stuart-semple/23611-deep-house-music "STUART SEMPLE, Deep House Music, 2013"
  62. Croughton, Paul (2012)"Art of Darkness" "The Sunday Times"9 September 2012. Retrieved 8 August 2014.
  63. http://blog.ica.org.uk/aka-peace-contemporary-artists-unite-for-peace-one-day "AKA Peace: Contemporary artists unite for Peace One Day"
  64. Symondson, Bran (2012) "Photo Essay Bran Symondson: AKA Peace exhibition" "Ceasefire Magazine". 26 September 2012.
  65. Chambers, Christopher Hart (2009). "Stuart Semple: Everlasting Nothing Less" "Flash Art". Retrieved 26 July 2011.
  66. Burgess, Kaya (2009). "Storm clouds give way to smileys over London" The Times, 25 February 2009. Retrieved 3 March 2009.
  67. http://ukrussia2014.ru/event/museum-night/ "Stuart Semple Moscow HappyClouds"
  68. Spero, Josh (2010). "Stuart Semple, Morton Metropolis" "[The Arts Desk]". Retrieved 10 September 2011.
  69. http://www.esquire.co.uk/gear/design/2628/hardcore-and-happy-house/ Esquire "Stuart Semple: Hardcore and Happy House"
  70. Cheung, Ysabelle (2012).Time Out "Stuart Semple" Time Out 15 February 2012. Retrieved 1 June 2014.
  71. Khan, Karim (2015).Hunger "Stuart Semple Suspend Disbelief"
  72. http://wsimag.com/art/5373-stuart-semple-suspend-disbilief "Stuart Semple. Suspend Disbelief"
  73. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-24532474 "BBC" In pictures: Stuart Semple
  74. http://www.hungertv.com/feature/the-interview-stuart-semple-2/ Hunger "Art & Culture THE INTERVIEW: STUART SEMPLE"
  75. Battersby, Matilda (2016)."The art of infertility – artist Stuart Semple raises awareness of female egg donation" "The Independent" 26 August 2016. Retrieved 27 August 2016.
  76. McClemont, Doug (2007). " Doug McClemont on The Black Market at Anna Kustera, New York", Saatchi Gallery, 25 July 2007. Retrieved from saatchi-gallery.co.uk, 12 November 2007. Link updated 1 July 2014
  77. Coghlan, Niamh (2008) Aesthetica Magazine "Pop Art & Mass Culture Curated by Stuart Semple" "Aesthetica Magazine", 1 August 2008. retrieved 1 July 2014.
  78. http://www.kowalskygallery.co.uk/mashups.html "The Kowalsky Gallery website"
  79. Kingston University. "London Loves" retrieved from Kingston University website, 11 April 2009.
  80. Davis, Laura (2010). Elle.com "Exciting New Gallery for Young British Artists", "Elle.com", 21 May 2010. Retrieved 15 June 2010.
  81. Kos Earle, Nico (2011). "Stuart Semple: Open Your Mind", Glass Magazine, 23 September 2011. Retrieved 27 October 2011.
  82. Jeffreys, Tom (2011). "Mental Health and Art as Therapy- an Interview with Stuart Semple", "Spoonfed.com", 6 September 2011. Retrieved 27 October 2011.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Stuart Semple".

Except where otherwise indicated, Everything.Explained.Today is © Copyright 2009-2024, A B Cryer, All Rights Reserved. Cookie policy.