Artist Research - Michael Landy

'Michael Landy (born 1963) is one of the Young British Artists (YBAs). He is best known for the performance piece installation Break Down (2001), in which he destroyed all his possessions, and for the Art Bin project (2010) at the South London Gallery. On 29 May 2008, Landy was elected a member of the Royal Academy of Arts in London.' - https://www.tate.org.uk/art/artists/michael-landy-2409

Michael Landy, Feverfew, from the series Nourishment, 2002. Etching on paper

What I like about this image is the sensitivity of the lines and the fact that Landy has included the plant's roots, whereas in a lot of artworks of plants we only see the 'pretty' side of them - this gives the drawing an informative aspect like an illustration from a botanical book. Even the colour of the background which is off-white gives the impression of book pages, and I think if it was a very bright clean white it would detract from the naturalism and rawness of the drawing. There is a lot of empty space surrounding the drawing and I think that's really effective because it creates a sense of isolation that makes the eyes fixate on it, while the portrait orientation mirrors the upward, growing movement of the plant. This piece has made me think more about the composition of my work and the choice of paper or background - I really like drawing with fine liner so I think there is a lot I can learn from Landy's work. My mushroom illustrations were much rougher than this piece, which was a deliberate choice, but I think my composition is much less considered as I drew them randomly around the page - it could make an interesting contrast to draw in this sketchy messy style but to have it neatly placed in the centre of the space.

This is another piece by Landy that I felt related to my work;

Machine Created to Destroy, 2010, collage on paper


I have been collecting metal items off the street as part of my interest in the perceived behaviours of magpies and crows, and I think this image contains a similar harshness to my found objects, with very strong industrial and mechanical iconography. The black and white format reminds me of the photograms I made recently and now I feel inspired to make one using all my found objects, and it would be good to replicate the kind of outward, chaotic energy that Landy's collage has - although it seems quite random at first, there is an odd sense of symmetry and purpose to it as well.


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