Press contact: Ida McCall
314.535.0770 x311 / imccall@camstl.org
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
JEREMY DELLER: JOY IN PEOPLE
CAM Presents First Mid-career Survey of Major British Artist
February 1–April 28, 2013
December 12, 2012 (St. Louis, MO) — The Contemporary Art Museum St. Louis
(CAM) is pleased to present Jeremy Deller: Joy in People, the first mid-career survey
of one of Britain’s most significant contemporary artists. Over the past two
decades, Jeremy Deller has redefined the rules of contemporary art and become a
profound influence on artists emerging today. His practice puts everyday life and
experience at the center of his internationally recognized collaborative and
interactive work, celebrating how people’s activities transform mass culture or
become part of the popular imagination itself. Deller’s statement that “art isn’t
about what you make but what you make happen” is reflected in the way that he
assembles things, stages events, and orchestrates and directs ephemeral yet
galvanizing situations.
Jeremy Deller, Joy in People, 2011. Courtesy the
artist. Photo: Linda Nylind. © Jeremy Deller
Joy in People will radically and dynamically transform CAM’s entire museum space,
from the galleries to the café, lobby, and courtyard. The exhibition features a
comprehensive selection of Deller’s major installations, photographs, videos,
posters, banners, performances, and sound works. This presentation includes Open
Bedroom (1993), a life-size reconstruction of his first exhibition staged in his
parents’ house while they were away on vacation, and Valerie’s Snack Bar, a
functioning replica of a Manchester café, originally created as a float for a parade
Deller orchestrated in 2009 (complemented by large-scale parade banners,
including one designed by David Hockney, and a video of the procession).
Many of Deller’s projects over the years have dealt with the social meanings of popular music. Joy in People presents a
number of his pioneering works, such as The Uses of Literacy (1997), an installation incorporating art by fans of the Welsh
rock group Manic Street Preachers, and Our Hobby is Depeche Mode (2006), a video and archive based on the international
devotees of the 1980s electro-pop band.
Deller’s work also incisively explores how the use of power by those in authority affects everyday people. His epic 2001
project, The Battle of Orgreave, is a two-part installation about a violent 1984 confrontation between striking coal miners
and mounted police—an event he re-staged with historical re-enactors and former miners. More recently, Deller has
explored the more arcane aspects of American culture and the legacy of the British glam wrestler Adrian Street.
An extensive array of public programs is planned to complement the exhibition, including a live performance of Deller’s
pivotal 1997 work Acid Brass, in which acid house techno music is played by a traditional brass band, as well as a discussion
between the artist and key participants in It Is What It Is, his 2009 project about the Iraq War. CAM’s museum store, CAM
POP, will also be specially curated to reflect Deller’s exuberant embrace of both high and low culture.
Jeremy Deller (b. 1966, London; lives in London) will represent Britain at the 2013 Venice Biennale. He studied art history at
the Courtauld Institute of Art and University of Sussex and, in 2004, won the Turner Prize. His work has been presented in
solo exhibitions at the New Museum of Contemporary Art, New York (in collaboration with the Museum of Contemporary
Art, Chicago, and the Hammer Museum, Los Angeles, 2009), the Palais de Tokyo, Paris (2008), and the Kunstverein in
-more-
1
Munch (2005), and in major group exhibitions such as September 11, at MoMA PS1, Long Island City, New York (2011), the
Sao Paolo Biennale, Sao Paolo, Brazil (2010), and the 54th Carnegie International, Carnegie Museum of Art, Pittsburgh
(2004), among many others.
Jeremy Deller: Joy in People is organized by the Hayward Gallery, London, where it was curated by Director Ralph Rugoff.
From the Hayward, it traveled to the WIELS Contemporary Art Centre, Brussels (June 1–August 19, 2012) and the ICA
Philadelphia (September 19–December 30, 2012). The exhibition is coordinated at the Contemporary Art Museum St. Louis
by Chief Curator Dominic Molon and is accompanied by a fully illustrated catalog ($40).
EXHIBITION PROGRAMS & EVENTS
Press Preview
Friday, February 1, 2013, 9:00 am
Remarks by Jeremy Deller and CAM Chief Curator Dominic Molon, followed by a walk-through of the exhibition.
RSVP to Ida McCall at 314.535.0770 x311 or imccall@camstl.org.
Opening Night
Friday, February 1, 2013
Patron Preview: 5:30 pm
Member Preview: 6:00 pm
Public Reception: 7:00–9:00 pm
Patron-level and member previews are presented by J.P. Morgan. Please RSVP to Emily DeCenso Carroll at 314.535.0770
x217 or ecarroll@camstl.org. The public reception is free and open to all.
Artist Talk: It Is What It Is: Conversations About Iraq
Saturday, February 2, 2013, 11:00 am
Free and open to the public.
This unique discussion brings together key participants in Jeremy Deller’s 2009 project about the war in Iraq, It Is What It Is:
Conversations About Iraq, to reflect on how an audience’s active engagement in the experience of art can transform one’s
understanding of the world. Deller is joined for the talk by Esam Pasha, an Iraqi refugee, artist, and former translator for the
Chief Advisor in the British Embassy of Baghdad; Jonathan Harvey, a veteran of the Iraq War; and Creative Time Chief
Curator Nato Thompson, all of whom participated in taking the project from city to city across the United States. In
partnership with Webster University.
Curatorial Tours
Saturday, February 9, 1:00 pm; Thursday, March 28, 7:00 pm; Thursday, April 25, 7:00 pm
Free and open to the public.
Explore the career and work of Jeremy Deller on a walk-through of the exhibition with Chief Curator Dominic Molon. On
March 28, Molon is joined by St. Louis artist, curator, and educator Daniel McGrath, who will provide an additional
perspective.
Unhappy Hour
Thursday, February 14, 6:00–9:00 pm
Free and open to the public.
Join us for a Valentine’s Day Unhappy Hour and take part in Jeremy Deller’s I Heart Melancholy—a black-on-black wall
professing a love for the downhearted. Julia Gordon-Bramer will provide complimentary tarot card readings, and British
style craft beers by Civil Life will be available at the bar.
What the F(ilm)? Screenings
Friday, February 22: 24 Hour Party People (Dir. Michael Winterbottom, 2002)
Friday, March 8: Brassed Off! (Dir. Mark Herman, 1996)
Friday, April 19: Cracked Actor (Dir. Alan Yentob, 1974)
All films screenings 7:30 pm.
Free and open to the public. Film screened in CAM’s café.
Much of Jeremy Deller’s work examines the social meanings of popular music, especially British music of the 1980s and
’90s. Explore the intersection of cultural history and music in these three fascinating films.
-more-
2
Tea Talks
Saturdays, February 23, March 23, and April 27, 2:00 pm
Free and open to the public.
Join us in Valerie’s Snack Bar in the Main Galleries for the English custom of afternoon tea. Invited experts will lead
discussions on a range of exhibition-related topics, including the Veiled Prophet Parade and parade culture, the
“Madchester” music scene, and crowd psychology.
Feast Your Eyes
Saturday, March 2
12:00 pm
$10 tasting; free for members. Tasting is limited to 40. Register at camstl.org/feast. Tour is free and open to the public.
Enjoy a creative, art-inspired tasting by Chef Michael Miller of Dressel’s Public House followed by a staff-led tour of the
exhibition. In partnership with FEAST Magazine.
Concert: Acid Brass
Thursday, March 14, 7:00 pm
$10; free for members.
In this live performance of Jeremy Deller’s pivotal work Acid Brass (1997), acid house dance hits of the 1980s (think: raves)
are played by the award-winning St. Louis Brass Band, combining two very different cultural traditions of industrial Britain.
Sunday Studio: Social Practice
(recommended for ages 16 and up)
Sunday, April 14, 1:00 pm
$10; free for members. Space is limited. Advance registration required at camstl.org/sundaystudio.
Join Community Arts Training Institute artists and educators from the Regional Arts Commission in a workshop examining
the social aspects of making art. Explore the ideas of community partnership, interdisciplinary collaboration, and more.
Member Book Club: The Dirt: Confessions of the World’s Most Notorious Rock Band
Thursday, April 18, 6:00 pm
Open to all members. Advance registration recommended at camstl.org/bookclub.
Chosen for discussion by artist Jeremy Deller, The Dirt is the autobiography of the 1980s heavy metal group Mötley Crüe, as
told by the band members and New York Times music writer Neil Strauss. Discussion will be led by Rob Levy, host of
“Juxtaposition” on KDHX.
Visit camstl.org/calendar for a full list of exhibition, family, and member programs and events.
EXHIBITION SPONSORS
Support for CAM’s exhibition program is provided by Jeanne and Rex Sinquefield; Nancy Reynolds and Dwyer P. Brown;
William E. Weiss Foundation; National Endowment for the Arts; and the Crawford Taylor Foundation. General operating
support is provided by Whitaker Foundation; Regional Arts Commission; Missouri Arts Council, a state agency; Bank of
America Charitable Foundation; Wells Fargo Advisors; Arts and Education Council; The Trio Foundation of St. Louis; and
members of the Contemporary Art Museum St. Louis.
CONTEMPORARY ART MUSEUM ST. LOUIS
The Contemporary Art Museum St. Louis (CAM) presents, supports, and celebrates the art of our time. It is the premier
museum in St. Louis dedicated to contemporary art. Focused on a dynamic array of changing exhibitions, CAM provides a
thought-provoking program that reflects and contributes to the global cultural landscape. Through the diverse perspectives
offered in its exhibitions, public programs, and educational initiatives, CAM actively engages a range of audiences to
challenge their perceptions. It is a site for discovery, a gathering place in which to experience and enjoy contemporary
visual culture.
3750 Washington Blvd / St. Louis, MO 63108 / 314.535.0660 / camstl.org
Hours: 11-6 Wed / 11-9 Thu & Fri / 10-5 Sat & Sun
###
3