131 - Diversion - Part 2, Reward

Charles Saatchi the famous and later, infamous (for gripping his bountiful, TV chef wife by the throat, in a chokehold, in public) art collector, approached the gallery to purchase it. I was thrilled.

Sitting in the spooky quiet of my studio (one of many, open topped, large cubicles in an old plaster factory on the Thames in Hammersmith), his assistant called me to negotiate the price. There was something a little creepy about being put on hold whilst the assistant spoke to Saatchi, who was obviously in the same room. Luckily I had priced it higher than I actually wanted, and they were willing to purchase a new version (as the first version was stuck to the wall).   

I think I sold it for £1,500 and the deal was that I would build a new version at Momart,  a huge art storage, installation and moving company in East London.

Conrad (my partner at the time) and I trekked over there and spent a physically exhausting couple of days, under the cold sunshine of the fluorescent lights, hammering fresh modelling clay into the wall. We were watched by contorted figures with anuses for mouthes wrapped in bubble wrap (“Zygotic Acceleration, Biogenetic, De-Sublimated Libidinal Model” by Jake and Dinos Chapman perhaps) and a pair of unmoving American tourists (“Tourists II” by Duane Hanson probably). 

By this time I had discovered the split baton method, so the piece was exhibition ready and moveable. 

Picture from the Bed Slats Workshop (not affiliated) https://bedslats.co.uk/products/split-battens-fittings-for-wall-mounting-headboards

However, it was never exhibited. And neither was “Coloured Vision” (also purchased by Saatchi). The YBA wave crested with The Sensation Show and although the Saatchi  called me about it, I wasn’t included in the final selection. 

You can find evidence of my 15 minutes as a YBA on the glossy pages (410 - 411) of a coffee table book called “Young British Art - The Saatchi Decade”.

Tomorrow Part 3