Grayson and Philippa Perry believe everyone is an artist, although they also recognise that not everybody is good at it... Their feeling that people should take time to explore their creativity through art led to them hosting Grayson’s Art Club on Channel Four. The husband & wife team have since taken the show on the road and are currently at Birmingham’s Midlands Arts Centre (MAC), where Grayson’s Art Club: The Exhibition will remain on display until the week after Easter... What’s On recently caught up with the couple to find out more...

There is something gloriously anarchic about an interview with artists and married couple Grayson and Philippa Perry. I’m meeting them at Midlands Arts Centre (MAC) just an hour before the official opening of Grayson’s Art Club: The Exhibition. We’re here to discuss the show, which runs until April and includes work featured during the third television series of Channel Four’s Grayson’s Art Club.

And we do talk about the exhibition, a bit - but viewers of the programme won’t be surprised to know that almost every question also sparks off a debate between Grayson and Philippa. Sometimes there is a pause while nobody answers, sometimes they both answer at once and sometimes they question each other.

We frequently veer wildly off subject, with Grayson and Philippa candid in their opinions - although some of these conversations are followed with a ‘don’t write that down’ or ‘I’m not sure I should have said that.’
Both are bright as butterflies - Grayson in a multicolour print dress, a pattern bow in his hair and glittery make-up, Philippa wearing a fuchsia jacket and large pink plastic-framed glasses. I feel I’m letting the meeting down in black skirt and jumper.

Launched during lockdown, Grayson’s Art Club features the couple in their studio, talking to members of the public who submit a photo or piece of film of their artwork, complete with background information. Each episode sees a celebrity drop in to make a piece of art, have a bite of lunch and a general chat. In between, Grayson and Philippa create and ponder.

The show has become a runaway success, with millions tuning in to watch and more than 17,000 people submitting work. The exhibition at MAC is expected to attract in excess of 100,000 visitors.
And yet, Philippa says, the programme was created mainly for selfish reasons.
“We were in lockdown and we needed to pass the time. The programme gave us contact with people, although it was only through glass because no cameramen or directors came into the studio. But we still did see people through glass, through the window, which was great. I think what I wanted it to achieve was for us to have some sort of social life when we weren’t allowed one. We had no idea and no ambition for it, we just sort of muddled through and it came good.”

So how do they choose which submissions to feature in the programme?
“I admire anyone who has got the courage to make themselves vulnerable, to send something in,” says Philippa, before adding “All we’re looking for...” Then she pauses, turns to Grayson and asks: “Am I giving too much away?”

After a ‘no’ from her husband, she continues: “All we’re looking for is the stories. There’s a story behind every bit of art because primarily we’re making television rather than an exhibition. And we wanted good television -  and for good television, you need good stories.”
Grayson takes up the baton: “The perfect sweet spot is when I like the person’s art and they’ve got a good story.”
“And that is the case with most of the artwork in this exhibition,” adds Philippa. “It’s an exhibition of stories.”
Grayson’s Art Club also aims to encourage each of us to pick up paper, a paintbrush or other materials. By including so many different pieces at MAC, the exhibition continues this trend.

Grayson explains: “The great thing about the Art Club exhibition is everybody that comes will find something they like because it’s so varied, and they will identify with it and they’ll go ‘Ooh, I think I could have a go at that.’ That’s what I think the joy of Art Club is; that people can see themselves in the different characters, and then they might have found their creative outlet.”

And Philippa adds: “It’s thinking ‘I like the way those two colours go together’ or ‘I could paint that.’ I think there’s a lot of art here that’s extraordinarily enjoyable but maybe not necessarily always terrifically well drawn. So I think people can realise that they, too, can make art - because the great thing about art is making it, really.”

The first two television series led to successful exhibitions in Manchester and Bristol. Now it’s Birmingham’s turn. Forming part of the 60th anniversary celebrations for MAC and featuring more than 100 pieces, Art Club is a ‘pay what you choose’ exhibition - but booking is essential. I ask the Perrys why they selected MAC out of the many venues keen to host the show.

“I really like the way that MAC involves the community so much in everything they do,” says Philippa, “and that is really good for us. Rather than ‘come and look at the masters’, like some venerable museums, MAC has got a ‘get involved’ vibe that really is almost like the most perfect place for Art Club. And when you are here, people always seem to be enjoying themselves and pleased to be here.”

Alongside works submitted by viewers, the exhibition features pieces by Grayson and Philippa, as well as by celebrities including Birmingham comedian Joe Lycett, Jo Brand, Harry Hill, Bill Bailey and Dame Prue Leith.

“All the celebrities are fun,” says Grayson. “We just let them get on with it. Joe Lycett is our favourite, of course, because he’s from Birmingham. Joe is really into his art.”
This brings us back to the discussion of whether anybody can be an artist.
“Everyone is an artist, yes, but whether they are a good artist is another matter,” says Grayson with a grin. He then becomes serious. “Being a good artist isn’t a thing that happens overnight. That whole thing of undiscovered geniuses is a bit of a romantic myth. There are, of course, still people out there, and probably not in the places you expect to find them. But the trouble is, if someone doesn’t have an inkling they are a good artist, then they are not going to be committed or be practising. You’ve got to have that intersection between someone who reckons they are quite good, and also they are applying themselves to it. It’s a long game, being an artist.”

Which is not to underestimate the value of simply ‘having a go’.
“I think creativity is really important because people feel powerless, and it’s a way of changing that,” Grayson explains. “It’s a small step that you can start with. A very simple drawing is a small step in saying you can alter the world, that you have the power to change your environment. You might just leave it at doing a few drawings, but before you know it, you’re designing a house, you’re designing a city. That is what is good about art - it’s very good to learn you can change the world.”

By Diane Parkes