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A Meeting of Minds

A Meeting of Minds

Yana Peel, CEO of the Serpentine Galleries; Turner-Prize Winner Grayson Perry; Johnny Coca, Previous Mulberry Creative Director; Hans Ulrich Obrist, Artistic Director of the Serpentine Galleries

Grayson Perry, the Serpentine Gallery and Mulberry share a passion for British creativity and craft, an unconventional take on tradition, a democratic attitude, and a love of breaking rules.

Mulberry was therefore an apt choice as the headline sponsor of Grayson Perry: The Most Popular Art Exhibition Ever! at London’s Serpentine Gallery, an institution at the heart of the British art scene, with an international, multicultural and trans-disciplinary identity. Their bold and unique vision of making exciting contemporary creation accessible to a wide audience resonates with Mulberry’s combination of heritage craft and tradition with a modern slant.

Turner Prize-winner Grayson Perry is a leading figure of the international art scene. His work celebrates contemporary ideas of Britishness through traditional media such as tapestry, textiles and ceramics, creating works replete with his personal brand of humour and social commentary. His quotations from popular culture and observations of British taste and class have even seen the inclusion of Mulberry as a fundamentally British fashion brand, an icon of England today. Perry’s idiosyncratic outlook and fresh perspective on history is coupled with his use of time-honoured skills to create something strikingly contemporary - a new take on ‘modern’ art.

Grayson Perry Long Pig, 2017, Glazed Ceramic ©Grayson Perry, Courtesy of the Artist and Victoria and Miro, London

Fashion is often a fitting supporter of Grayson Perry, whose creative expression is applied just as often to the outfits he designs as to his artworks, and whose love of cross-dressing as Claire often features heavily in the objects he creates. Mulberry collaborated with Grayson Perry in the same mould-breaking vein to create two bespoke handbags to match outfits worn by Perry. The Mulberry for Grayson Perry handbags took Claire as their muse to create variations on the iconic Amberley. First presented at the AW ’17 show, the silhouette was chosen for its classic top-handle shape, referencing archetypal designs and iconic British women including Queen Elizabeth II herself. Grayson Perry said,

"I do love a handbag. Handbags are sculptures; we sit them on the table and feast our eyes and we cannot resist touching them. Can’t wait to plunge my hand into my new Mulberry."

Mulberry for Grayson Perry: the artist is wearing his Small Amberley Satchel

Both the Serpentine Galleries and Grayson Perry have a close connection to Mulberry, and to the distinct point of view of creative director Johnny Coca, who said “all three have a passion for British creativity and craft, an unconventional take on tradition, a democratic attitude, and a love of breaking rules.