Gilian Wearing

Artwork page for ‘‘I’m desperate’’, Gillian Wearing CBE, 1992–3 The series of photographs called Signs... brought Wearing international recognition when it was first exhibited in 1993. This selection of five images shows the range of responses which Wearing elicited from passers-by, whom she selected at random, and asked to write their thoughts on a piece of paper. Wearing challenges social stereotypes and assumptions, and often works in collaboration with members of the public as a means of…

The artist is showing at the Whitechapel Gallery and you can submit your own 'sign' to win a VIP trip to the exhibition

Wearing asked people on the street to write whatever they were thinking on a card and hold it up, and she photographed the result.

Artwork page for ‘‘I have been certified as mildly insane!’’, Gillian Wearing CBE, 1992–3 Wearing’s photographs explore how the public and private identities of ordinary people are self-fashioned and documented. For this series, Wearing stood on a busy street and asked passers-by to write down what was on their mind. She then photographed them holding their statements. A broad cross-section of people participated in the photographs. The series provides a fascinating social and historical…