Grayson Perry: Super Rich Interior Decoration, Victoria Miro, Mayfair

An exhibition of new works by Grayson Perry is to go on display at Victoria Miro this September. Perry is known for approaching his work with an anthropological eye, bringing class, gender and politics into his imagery. For this exhibition – his first at the gallery since 2012 – he turns his attention to power, desire and money with tapestries, prints and his trademark ceramics.

One piece to go on display, entitled Shopping for Meaning, will be decorated with photographs of Perry taken by Eleni Parousi. In these images Perry is dressed in various outfits, posing in front of Mayfair’s designer stores. The work examines the capitalist idea that we can achieve a sense of self through the items we purchase. Identity continues to be central to Perry’s art.

Another work, entitled Thin Woman with Painting, depicts a patron at home with her collection, which contains pieces resembling Grayson’s art. Is Perry simply, even fondly, representing the people who purchase his work, or is he mocking them? As a successful celebrity artist, whose work sells for a fortune, the potential hypocrisy is obvious. Perry’s art is, after all, a commodity, a status symbol that can only be afforded by the very wealthy and so he runs the risk of lambasting the very industry he feeds (and that feeds him). But for Grayson, no corner of society is off-limits. We are told that Perry held in his mind Nam June Paik’s quote, ‘the artist should always bite the hand that feeds him – but not too hard.'

For this exhibition Perry has been given access to the archives of photographer Martin Parr. It’s a perfect paring – both capture society at large with a playfully wry outlook and the resulting work should be worth a look. This exhibition promises everything we expect from Perry – the daft, the cutting and fun. By also contains, we hope, some awareness of his own privileged position.