Martin Creed born 1968
Digital print on paper
The work’s irreverent message appears discreet due to its small size and almost apologetic lower-case lettering; the blank expanse of the rest of the page, however, gives the words disproportionate weight and presence. This simultaneously self-effacing and assertive quality is typical of Creed’s work. His practice, which includes musical performance as well as object-making, often consists of small adjustments to everyday objects and situations by, for instance, positioning a small lump of Blu-Tack on a wall (Work No.79, 1993, private collection) or setting a timer to switch the lights on and off in thirty second bursts (Work No.127, 1995, private collection). His philosophy of making something out of nothing, and indeed nothing out of something, is summed up in the equation spelled out in his neon installation Work No. 232: the Whole World + the Work = the Whole World, 2000 (Tate T07769), which suggests that artistic creation is futile yet intrinsic to our experience of the world.
‘Fuck off’ is a command to disappear, to revert to nothingness. The apparent aggression in the statement aligns this print with other works by Creed which present the viewer with unexpected obstructions or commands. In Work No.115, 1995-99 (collection of the artist) a doorstop is positioned so as to allow a door to open only 45 degrees while the instructions for Work No.100, 1994-99 (private collection) stipulate that a stack of tiles be positioned ‘in an awkward place’ on a tiled floor. The mildly anarchic provocation in Creed’s print recalls the similarly blunt message in Giorgio Sadotti’s Don't Look, 2000 (Tate P78403) which is also included in the Print Box.