The Vanity Of Small Differences
The Vanity Of Small Differences
Signed Print
Grayson Perry
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20 x 37cm, Edition of 1000, Lithograph
Medium: Lithograph
Edition size: 1000
Year: 2012
Size: H 20cm x W 37cm
Signed: Yes
Format: Signed Print
Last Auction: September 2019
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Meaning & Analysis
This signed set of six offset lithographs printed in colours from 2012 is a limited edition of 1000 from Grayson Perry’s The Vanity of Small Differences series. The set is composed of six different lithographs, which come together to compose a visual narrative on the life and death of Tim Rakewell.
Produced in 2012 on the occasion of Perry’s solo show for Victoria Miro, London, and in conjunction with Perry’s All In The Best Possible Taste, a series of tv programmes hosted by the artist on Channel 4, this series of lithographs attests to Perry’s monumental and iconic tapestry work. The works are inspired by William Hogarth’s A Rake’s Progress and offer a satirical, dark-humoured commentary on consumer culture and materialism, an interest Perry shares with the likes of Warhol, Koons and Duchamp.
The pieces follow the life of young Tim as he is still a baby born in a lower-class family and progresses until Tim becomes a member of the well-to-do upper-class, having lucratively sold his software company. The series ends with Tim’s premature death following a car accident, Perry’s dark humoured final commentary on society’s materialism symbolised by the crashed Ferrari. In the series, as Tim grows richer, he surrounds himself with increasingly expensive consumer goods, which point towards his obsession with wealth and his materialism.
Like in most of his other works, Perry once again offers a critical and witty commentary on everyday life, and gestures towards the modern-day obsession with objects and to how materialistic goods are now the main vehicles through which people convey their economic status as well as their need for belonging and acceptance.
The highest value realised for a work by Grayson Perry was in October 2017, when I Want To Be An Artist fetched £632,750 at Christie's, London. The values achieved for Perry's work at auction regularly land in the hundreds of thousands of pounds.
A beacon of British contemporary art, Grayson Perry defies artistic norms with his distinctive blend of wit, satire, and profound social commentary. Renowned for his ceramic masterpieces adorned with intricate narratives, Perry's alter-ego, Claire, adds another layer to his multidimensional artistry. Winner of the Turner Prize in 2003, Perry delves into the complexities of identity, class, gender, and societal norms. His tapestries, sculptures, and drawings showcase a keen insight into the human condition, challenging viewers to confront uncomfortable truths with humour and empathy. Perry's artistic victories consolidate him as disruptor of mainstream expression and as a key player in the contemporary arts scene.