Grayson Perry: Who are you?

Grayson Perry has always been someone I've wanted to discover more about. I think it was last year I listened to his Reith Lectures that were broadcast on BBC4 and the way he spoke really engaged me. So until I go out and get his most recent book, I thought I'd follow my lecturer Niall's recommendation and give Perry's Channel 4 series 'Who Are You?' a watch.

Episode 1 down and I really enjoyed it! It's great that an artist like Perry has the confidence and drive to connect with people and join them in exploring both their true and 'second self'.
Throughout the meetings with his 4 subjects, I got the impression he managed to gain their trust and gradually allowed them all to open up. With a vision like this, and having the means to create a series documenting it, I believe one would require a certain amount of compassion to follow through with the process. I found Grayson Perry's investigative behaviour very necessary, yet compassionate.

The exploration of former Secretary of State Chris Huhne interested me the most. It was clear to me from the off set that Grayson Perry's methods of dissection as it were, seemed rife with intent. Perry sat with a pen and paper in front of a positioned Huhne and posed a number of questions.
In this case, Grayson was trying to uncover any signs of vulnerability in Huhne's identity particularly siting his resignation from office and perverting the course of justice. All he seemed to uncover was a brick wall, a somewhat 'indestructible' politician dripping with positivity and compliance. After a 2 and a half month prison stint, Perry was again eager to investigate and observe the now ex-prisoner Huhne. Perry kept this theme of vulnerability and created a pot inscribed with repeat patterns referencing different parts of Chris Huhne's life up to this point.
He then proceeded to smash the pot with a hammer and seal all the parts back together, thus symbolising a crack or at least a visible clue that what he has been through is beginning to show.

I'm not going to go and review the whole episode, that would be pointless. I just wanted to say how impressed I was! Identity is very important and is always at the forefront of our lives. The way Grayson Perry spoke of this highlighted it's diversity and through his four subjects managed to explore some very different identities, and the struggles and transitions of the people behind them.

Personally, my opinions on identity and how artists express themselves through their work has dramatically changed over the past weeks. I feel more open to discovering why we as a human race have this urge to express ourselves and possess the intentions of 'finding ourselves'.
I have truly understood through my time on this course that asking questions is the only way we find answers! I've always known that, but until recently and probably due to my exposure to more and more exhibitions around the country and speaking to my lecturers, I have been able to begin thinking about things in a different way.
I feel like the only way I will be able to appropriately produce my own, more personal work, is if I explore, discover and allow myself to be open to as many different kinds of art as possible.
More specifically, I'm looking at a lot of contemporary and more controversial work such as instillations.

I'll continue watching the series and if I feel the need to post again about it I will.