As the most successful ticketed exhibition ever at Dovecot Studios, Edinburgh, Julie Cope’s Grand Tour: The Story of a Life by Grayson Perry shows that Scotland loves Essex native and self-styled ‘unapologetic fetishist’ Grayson Perry.
Grayson Perry’s first-ever major solo exhibition in Scotland has drawn record crowds to Dovecot Studios, Edinburgh.
With the help of the large-scale tapestries and an audio ballad inspired by folk traditions, Perry tells the story of fictional everywoman Julie Cope. From her birth during the Canvey Island floods to her untimely death in a scooter accident, the artist celebrates the mundane and leaves audiences pondering the extraordinary in the ordinary.
No stranger to pulling big audiences, Perry’s exhibition Super Rich Interior Decoration which opened at Victoria Miro, London in September has caused a stir in the art world with queues snaking through the streets.
Although exploring the life of an Essex character in his current exhibition at Dovecot, the story of Julie has touched Scottish audiences.
Visitors have commented :
“The poetic words of the story of Julie Cope are extraordinary.”
“Like eating too many skittles at once – sharp, wholesome, acid. Monolithic questions that allow for contemplative responses. And so, so welcoming.”
Part of the appeal lies in Perry’s masterful storytelling through tapestry, a medium Dovecot specialises in as a hand-weaving tapestry studio. Challenging the tradition of hand-weaving by creating tapestries via digital and machine methods, Perry opens up new conversations around the craft which allows Dovecot to draw parallels and differences between hand and machine woven tapestry.
With just over two weeks left until the exhibition closes, this is the last chance for Scottish audiences to engage with Perry’s touching and compelling story.
As a milestone exhibition, Dovecot Director Celia Joicey said: “This is the first exhibition at Dovecot that looks set to support the tapestry studio through ticket sales and we are hugely grateful to everyone who has visited for their contribution to supporting the future of Scottish tapestry and fine art textiles.”
Julie Cope’s Grand Tour: The Story of a Life by Grayson Perry is on at Dovecot Studios until 2 November 2019.
Visit dovecotstudios.com for tickets and more information.
Founding Editor of The Edinburgh Reporter.
Edinburgh-born multimedia journalist and iPhoneographer.
