Simon Bedwell is best known for his collaborative, interdisciplinary practice, and over the past eight years he has developed a committed solo sculptural practice, involving technically ambitious fired ceramic. Bedwell applies this ‘informe’ medium to political satire: rendering caricature in baked mud, returning to grotesqueries he first explored in BANK.
Bedwell ‘s most recent solo shows were The Entertaining Mr Bone (DePimlico Projects 2019), London, Society (Hospitalfield House, Arbroath, 2017) and No (Piper Keys, London 2016). He was part of London art group BANK (1991-2003), whose recent shows include British Conceptual Art 1998-99 (Ordet, Milan 2022) and Status Quo: We wanted to paint the walls pink and blue and have a golf buggy in the gallery but all we got was this white cube graveyard (Galerie Neu, Berlin).
Bedwell’s collaborative practice, began as a founder of BANK 1991–2003. Over twelve years, BANK invited 180 artists (including Hilary Lloyd, Peter Doig, Ingrid Pollard, John Stezaker, Martin Creed, Adam Chodzko, Art & Language, Bethan Huws, Rebecca Warren, Chris Ofili, Sonia Boyce, Jake & Dinos Chapman, Terry Atkinson) to participate in more than 30 intensely collaborative exhibitions, focussing on the aesthetic and political implications of non-individualised artistic production. Since BANK disbanded Bedwell has continued to work collaboratively. The Arts Council funded project The Hole, 2011, featured Katrina Palmer, Laure Prouvost, Tom Benson, Merve Kaptan, Gail Pickering, Rehana Zaman, Alice Channer, Leah Capaldi, Phillip Lai. He has also exhibited with curators who emphasise a collaborative approach: Matthew Higgs (White Columns); Joe Scotland & Sarah McCrory (Studio Voltaire); Helen Simpson/Lucy Byatt (Hospitalfield); Padraic Moore (Damien the Love God, Brussels); and Andrew Mezvinsky (depimlico). A book with curators Galilean Dejean & Tenzing Barshee, concentrating upon BANK’s Fax-back work, was published by Lens Press in 2021, and Black Dog Publishing produced the monograph, BANK, in 2001.
SOLO EXHIBITIONS
(* indicates BANK exhibitions)
2022 STATUS QUO: WE WANTED TO PAINT THE WALLS PINK AND BLUE AND HAVE A GOLF BUGGY IN THE GALLERY BUT ALL WE GOT WAS THIS WHITE CUBE GRAVEYARD Galerie Neu, Berlin*
2021 CONCEPTUAL ART IN THE UK 1998-1999 Ordet, Milan*
2019 THE ENTERTAINING MR BONE DePimlico Projects, London
2017 SOCIETY Hospitalfield House, Arbroath, Scotland
2016 NO Piper Keys, London
2014 FIRST AND LAST MEN Ha Gamle, Norway
BANK FILMS Trade, Nottingham*
THE BANQUET YEARS MOTinternational, London*
2013 THE BANQUET YEARS:RELICS AND ARCHIVES MGK Elaine, Basel*
2012 SELF PORTRAIT: RELICS AND ARCHIVES Treize, Paris*
2009 THE PAINTER OF THE HOLE MOT International, London
ASPHALT WORLD Studio Voltaire, London
2007 THE RECEIVERS MOT International, London
THE FURNISHERS White Room, White Columns, New York
2006 THE RESEARCHERS Byam Shaw School of Art gallery, London
2005 THE ADVERTS Rental, Los Angeles
GENTS: A Melodrama with 2 Acts, Platform, London
SIMON BEDWELL Ritter/Zamet, London
2004 ADVERTISING DOESN’T TELL ANYONE ANYTHING ANYWAY Piccadilly Circus Underground station concourse, London
GROUP EXHIBITIONS
2016 IN A DREAM I SAW A WAY TO SURVIVE AND I WAS FULL OF JOY Whitworth Gallery Manchester/De La Warr Pavilion Bexhill/Glyn Vivian, Swansea
2014 PARADIGM STORE Howick Place, London
2012 TO START WITH, LET’S REMOVE THE COLOUR Temple Bar Gallery, Dublin, Eire
WRITER IN RESIDENCE Ormeston House, Limerick, Eire*
THE WEIGHT OF LIVING MOTinternational, London
2011 THE HOLE The Hole, London 5 exhibitions & 5 publications over 5 weekends for bespoke gallery space featuring artists Alice Channer, Laure Prouvost, Katrina Palmer, Tom Benson, Phillip Lai, Merve Kaptan, Leah Capaldi, Claire Carter and guest curators Gail Pickering and Rehana Zaman
CABARET Ramin Barquet, New York
WE ARE GRAMMAR Pratt Manhattan Gallery, New York
PEEPING TOM Kunsthal KaDe, Amersfoort, Netherlands
2010 RUDE BRITANNIA: BRITISH COMIC ART Tate Britain*
LA BELLE DAME SANS MERCI Vegas, London
HELIOTROPE Vulpes Vulpes, London
SO BE IT: INTERVENTIONS IN PRINTED MATTER Roth, NY