christian marclay

Multimedia visionary

Christian Marclay is that unlikely beast, an influential visual artist who is also taken seriously in the world of experimental music. The Swiss-american established himself on the New York scene in the mid-1980s, when he literally mashed up vinyl discs then played them in all their distorted glory on his self-made ‘phonoguitar’, a record player slung around his neck. As Guest Editor, Marclay reimagined his Manga Scroll to dramatic effect. He has since expanded his work, with a 2015 show at White Cube Bermondsey, and the 2016 Six New Animations, based on photographs of detritus taken on his daily walks around London, where he now lives. A magician of sonic and visual collage, Marclay’s sense of humour makes his best work both challenging and – a rare thing in contemporary art – rib-tickingly funny.