The 2.5-metre Grayson Perry artwork acquired 'for the nation' by Scottish galleries
The American Dream was on display in Edinburgh two years ago
A 2.5 metre print of a map created by artist Sir Grayson Perry after he filmed a TV show exploring the US has been acquired for the nation by the National Galleries of Scotland (NGS).
The artist said the American Dream artwork had been inspired by his time on The Great American Road Trip, which aired on Channel 4 in 2020.
It was part of an exhibition of Sir Grayson’s work, Grayson Perry: Smash Hits, which was on show at the National Gallery on the Mound two years ago.
The print, the only work of Turner Prize winner Sir Grayson’s owned by NGS, is now being displayed at Modern One in Edinburgh. The gallery said acquiring a work by the artist had been “long considered”.
It is not known what the gallery paid for the work of art. However, in June last year, one copy of the etching went for £32,000 at an auction held by Bonhams in London.
The print acquired by NGS s described as an “epic satirical statement on our current culture wars”.
Sir Grayson said: “This is a map of the US I made in response to my experiences there when filming my television series, Grayson Perry’s Big American Road Trip.
“It toys with the common delusion that there is a clear and certain route out of our mess of feelings. Stylistically, I was thinking of Cold War propaganda maps showing the ‘communist threat’ in the 1950s.”
The artist said the figure at the top is Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg - the “best known face of social media power”.
Sir Grayson said: “When looking at the conflicts that swirl around social media, I find it illuminating to observe the scene like a psychotherapist might listen to a client.
“When we experience a background hum of unfocused emotion, be it anxiety, sadness, fear, anger, we unconsciously look for something to attach it to.
“Social media is brilliant at supplying us with issues to which we can attach our free-floating feelings.”
Sir Grayson has gone from taking evening classes in pottery to winning the Turner Prize. He is also known for appearing in television shows including The Masked Singer earlier this year.
Patrick Elliot, NGS chief curator of modern and contemporary art, said: “We didn’t have a work of Perry’s in Scotland’s national collection, but it was something we had long considered. When the opportunity to acquire one of the prints came up after the exhibition it seemed the perfect opportunity.
“Perry’s prints are enormous, hilarious, full of biting satire, and gorgeously coloured and detailed. We all loved The American Dream, as with so much of Perry’s work it is hilarious, but bang on.”
He added: “The feedback we got from visitors to the exhibition was hugely positive. You could see them laughing out loud and engaging with strangers as they studied the pots and prints with their acutely observed comments on society.
“So, we hope that visitors can have the same positive experience when they come to visit The American Dream at Modern One.”
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