Ben Luke talks to Mike Nelson about his influences – from the worlds of literature, film, music and, of course, art – and the cultural experiences that have shaped his life and work.
Installation view of Mike Nelson Me, IMPOSTER (the darkroom) (2011)
Photo: Matt Greenwood. Courtesy of the artist and Hayward Gallery
Nelson, born in 1967 in Loughborough in the United Kingdom, is one of the most important British sculptors and installers of this century. He has spent the past three decades assembling materials collected from junkyards, flea markets, online auctions and even street corner fly boards into often labyrinthine sculptural environments. He creates distinctive spaces that suggest fictional (and often sci-fi) narratives, while alluding to various histories, obscure countercultural or political movements and current events as well as his own biography.
Installation view of Mike Nelson The Asset Strippers (solstice) (2019)
Photo: Matt Greenwood. Courtesy of the artist and Hayward Gallery
He discusses the early influence of Graham Sutherland and Francis Bacon, his joy in discovering the work of Paul Thek, how fiction and science fiction writers like Stanislaw Lem, JG Ballard and the Strugatsky brothers liberated his approach to artistic creation, and the lasting influence of filmmakers such as Jean-Luc Godard and Sergei Parajanov.
Installation view of Mike NelsonTriple Bluff Canyon (the stake) (2004)
Photo: Matt Greenwood. Courtesy of the artist and Hayward Gallery
• Mike Nelson: extinction beckons, Hayward GalleryLondon, until May 7
Series 15 of A brush with… runs from March 29 to April 19, with episodes airing on Wednesdays. You can download and subscribe to the podcast here
This podcast is sponsored by Bloomberg connectsthe arts and culture app.
The free app offers access to a huge range of international cultural organizations via a single download, with new guides added regularly. Recent additions include distinctive museums in different parts of the United States: the Mingei Museum in San Diego, the Museum of Contemporary Art in St Louis, and the Museum of Arts and Design in New York. A host of other organizations with guides on Bloomberg connects showed works by Mike Nelson, from the Hayward Gallery in London – the host of Mike’s major exhibition between February and May 2023 – to the Tate in the UK and the High Line in New York. Download the app and find the High Line guide, and you can learn more about the former air freight railway line turned into a park and sculpture trail. There is information on works in progress, High Line garden areas and access to the full archive of art projects since 2012.
