Inventive heroes: Jeremy Deller
In 2012, Jeremy Deller sent one of Britain's most popular landmarks on a tour of Britain. Sacrilege, a bouncy castle version of Stonehenge, offered the audience a compelling mix of politics, history, and playfulness: topics that have been central to Deller's art since the late 1990s, when he first became known.
Deller, who won the Turner Prize in 2004, has always created works in which ideas and experiences take precedence over physical works of art. His work is often rooted in British culture: in 1997 Acid Brass worked with a brass band to play tracks from the rave era, and in 2001 he staged a reenactment of the 1984 miners' strike involving The Battle of Orgreave involving around a thousand people – including 200 from the original event.
His continued interest in pop culture and his willingness to question ours British ideas helped him become one of today's most influential artists. Here he takes CR on a whistle stop tour of the past 40 years, from Top of the Pops and his most important appearance in the 90s to his fascination with the Millennium Dome and The Office.
Above and above: For Sacrilege (2012), Deller created an inflatable replica of Stonehenge in full size that toured the UK
The 1980s
"I was a very uncool teenager." Deller entered the 80s as a 14-year-old, and although his teenage years were uncomfortable, they were also of enormous importance. This was the era in which his long-lasting fascination with pop culture and music began, which later became apparent in his career through works such as Acid Brass and his latest documentary Everybody in the Place about the British rave scene of the 80s.
"A lot happened between 14 and 24 – that's a big moment," says Deller, who grew up in London. “The 80s were school and university, so I watched a lot of TV. Music and television have probably influenced me the most. Channel 4 was an exciting time because of what they showed – the almost random nature of the channel and its avant-garde quality.
“For me, they showed one of the most important art films of all time – Rock My Religion by Dan Graham. It's really the blueprint of art documentaries about music, and from that time on, you can trace so many works of art and artist films back to the way that archive and voice-over were used, and a juxtaposition of images. Channel 4 was one of those things where you could get drunk home, turn on the TV, and see something you never expected. Almost like the Internet now. "