Arts & Culture
Originally published on Tuesday, 2nd December 2008
Sicko
Art, to me, has always bordered precariously between fascination and boredom. Boring: school field day to stare at old masters and contemplate a rubbish packed lunch. Fascinating: gardens built in skips, phantom artists dropping pieces around London and finding them on eBay the next day, and the kind of out-of-the-box thinking that led Sickboy to dump a caged heart outside the Tate Modern in response to the corporate backing of a graffiti show held there. (It still counts as street as long as it’s outside of the building, right?)
Having become a leading member of the Bristolian graffiti scene and long-serving artist with Pictures on Walls with his intricate, often humorous works, Sickboy is finally set to reveal his first solo show, Stay Free, tomorrow. Like Banksy before him, who installed a surreal petshop in New York, complete with fish fingers in a bowl and monkeys enjoying primate porn, Sickboy is transforming a Victorian Grade II listed building in East London into a 3D creative playground, à la ‘Charlie and the Chocolate Factory’.
Worth £20k and spanning over 14ft, it will feature custom-designed windows, a veranda and a conveyor belt, and in true golden ticket style, the lot could be yours. 1,000 golden keys will be released to visitors, and the person whose key fits the lock will become the new owner of the Factory.
Now that’s the key to interesting art.
Stay Free launches on December 3 from 6:30pm – 10pm; Apply online for tickets.
Open to the general public from December 4-10, 2008 between 12pm and 6pm.
The Tramshed, 6-8 Garden Walk, Shoreditch, London, EC2A 3EQ.
