Inspired in part by his name, the British conceptual artist Gavin Turk has curated an exhibition based on tulips, currently on show at the Bowes Museum in Teesdale, UK. The idea was put forward by Turk’s friend and fellow artist from student days at the Chelsea School of Art, Philippa van Loon. A descendant of the Van Loon family whose fortune comes from trading with the Ottoman Empire from the 16th century, her family crest includes the figure of a Moor. Today the family occupies the top floors of their late 17th-century house in the old canal district of Amsterdam, which is now the Van Loon Museum. Taking the tulip as a symbol of trade and migration, Turk invited contributions from fellow artists including Damien Hirst, Cornelia Parker, Michael Craig-Martin and Peter Blake. His own contribution is a Dutch commercial tulip box in bronze.
The exhibition continues until November 5, 2017
Silkscreen print by Michael Craig-Martin CREDIT: MICHAEL CRAIG-MARTIN & THE HOUSE OF FAIRY TALES, TURKISH TULIPS PORTFOLIO