Anthony Cragg, 1949

Born in Liverpool, United Kingdom, in 1949, Anthony Cragg worked as a laboratory technician at the Research Association of British Rubber Manufacturers between 1966-1968, then studied art in different cities across the UK. After attending Gloucestershire College of Art (1969-1970) in Cheltenham, he completed his undergraduate studies at the Wimbledon School of Art (1970-1973) and received his master's degree from the Royal College of Art in London (1973-1977). Since 1977, the artist has been living and working in Wuppertal, Germany.

Anthony Cragg made a name for himself in the late 1970s with a series of minimalist and conceptual sculptures based on movement, where he used his body as part of his works. Later, he produced works in which he applied vividly colored, discarded objects to large surfaces and invited formal connections with different images. One of the leading names of British sculpture since the 1980s, Cragg continued his studies of form in later works by arranging found objects in three dimensions. His sculptures, which can be grouped under several different categories based on their forms, document his expert use of materials. While applying different methods to transform organic or industrial materials into sculptures, the artist emphasizes the importance of artisanship during production and underlines the uniqueness of each work.

The sculpture, “Ugly Faces”, marks the beginning of a new direction for Cragg as he incorporates into his work the idea of cell fission and regeneration around a central axis.