Richard Wilson

Who is Richard Wilson?

Richard Wilson is a British sculptor, installation artist and musician.

Born in Islington, London, he studied at the London College of Printing, Hornsey College of Art and Reading University. He was the DAAD resident in Berlin in 1992, Maeda Visiting Artist at the Architectural Association in 1998 and nominated for the Turner Prize in both 1988 and 1989.

Wilson's first solo show was 11 Pieces, at the Coracle Press Gallery in London in 1976. Since then he has had at least 50 solo exhibitions around the world.

He formed the Bow Gamelan Ensemble in 1983 with Anne Bean and Paul Burwell.

Wilson's work is characterised by architectural concerns with volume, illusionary spaces and auditory perception. His most famous work 20:50, a room of specific proportions, part-filled with highly reflective used sump oil creating an illusion of the room turned upside down was first exhibited at Matt's Gallery, London in 1987, became one of the signature pieces of the Saatchi Gallery. It is considered to be a defining work in the genre of site-specific installation art. The same year the temporary installation One Piece at a Time filled the south tower of the Tyne Bridge at Newcastle-upon-Tyne.