My Heroes thumbnail 1
My Heroes thumbnail 2
+1
images
On display
Image of Gallery in South Kensington

My Heroes

Vase
1994 (made)
Artist/Maker
Perry, Grayson (maker)
Place of origin
London (made)

Turner Prize-winning artist Grayson Perry uses the domestic and decorative associations of ceramics to explore complex personal, social and cultural themes. This vase depicts motorcyclist Barry Sheene, punk singer Mark E. Smith, transsexual model April Ashley and 19th century artist Aubrey Beardsley. By placing them on a pottery vase, Perry assigns them the status of popular heroes in an imagined folk-art tradition.

Object details

Categories
Ceramics
Studio Pottery
Gender and Sexuality
LGBTQ
Object type
Vase
TitleMy Heroes (assigned by artist)
Materials and techniques
Earthenware, coil-built, incised and applied decoration, coloured slips and glazes, enamel, gilding
Earthenware
Incised
Applied Work
Brief description
Vase, 'My Heroes', Grayson Perry, London, 1994.
Physical description
Coil-built earthenware vase bearing portraits of Mark E. Smith, Barry Sheene, April Ashley and Aubrey Beardsley.
Dimensions
  • Height: 30.4cm
  • Diameter: 31.0cm
Marks and inscriptions
Seal mark incorporating a 'W' above an anchor, impressed
Gallery label
(18/09/2009)
Grayson Perry (born 1960)
‘My Heroes’
1994

Turner Prize-winning artist Grayson Perry
uses the domestic and decorative
associations of ceramics to explore
complex personal, social and cultural
themes. This vase depicts motorcyclist
Barry Sheene, punk singer Mark E. Smith,
transsexual model April Ashley and 19th century
artist Aubrey Beardsley. By
placing them on a pottery vase, Perry
assigns them the status of popular heroes
in an imagined folk-art tradition.

Made in London
Earthenware, coil-built and glazed, with
incised decoration

Museum no. C.10-2009. Bought with the assistance of Dennis and
Charlotte Stevenson
Credit line
Bought with the assistance of Dennis and
Charlotte Stevenson
Subjects depicted
Gender Issues
Homosexuality
Gender Identity
Trans
Sheene, Barry
Smith, Mark E.
Ashley, April
Beardsley, Aubrey Vincent
Summary
Turner Prize-winning artist Grayson Perry uses the domestic and decorative associations of ceramics to explore complex personal, social and cultural themes. This vase depicts motorcyclist Barry Sheene, punk singer Mark E. Smith, transsexual model April Ashley and 19th century artist Aubrey Beardsley. By placing them on a pottery vase, Perry assigns them the status of popular heroes in an imagined folk-art tradition.
Bibliographic references
  • Yoshioka, Emiko (ed.). My Civilisation: Grayson Perry. Kanazawa: 21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art, 2007. pp. 22-23, 105.
  • This object features in 'Out on Display: A selection of LGBTQ-related objects on display in the V&A', a booklet created by the V&A's LGBTQ Working Group. First developed and distributed to coincide with the 2014 Pride in London Parade, the guide was then expanded for the Queer and Now Friday Late that took place in February 2015.
  • Owens, Susan, The Art of Drawing British Masters and Methods since 1600, V&A Publishing, London, 2013, p. 164, fig. 132
Collection
Ceramics Collection
Accession number
C.10-2009

About this object record

Explore the Collections contains over a million catalogue records, and over half a million images. It is a working database that includes information compiled over the life of the museum. Some of our records may contain offensive and discriminatory language, or reflect outdated ideas, practice and analysis. We are committed to addressing these issues, and to review and update our records accordingly.

You can write to us to suggest improvements to the record.

Suggest feedback

Record createdApril 30, 2009
Record URL
https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O229059/my-heroes-vase-perry-grayson/
Download as: JSONIIIF Manifest