“Dangerous” Metropolitan Police
“Disgusting” The Big Issue
“A pain in the ass” Nacht Kritik
“It’s not entertaining” The Scotsman.
the vacuum cleaner is the name of a UK based artist and activist who makes candid, provocative and playful work.
His work combines madpride and disability justice organising, direct action and deep ecology, but always with a lightness and silliness. Over the last 12 years he has focused on design of mad spaces, organising and crip aesthetics. Often working with large groups including young people, health professionals and different communities, his art and activism aims to challenge and change how mental health is understood, treated and experienced.
With roots in activism and radical art, the vacuum cleaner has created one-man interventions and large-scale actions as well as performance, installation and film. His work has been shown in galleries, theatres, hospitals and schools and has appeared on streets, within social movements and in public spaces internationally.
Recent major commissions include: Manchester International Festival in 2023, Chisenhale Gallery, Mayor of London in 2022 and Wellcome Collection 2021.
Selected performances, exhibitions and festivals include:
Whitechapel Gallery. Southbank Centre. Freud Museum. FACT. The Mac. Contact. Bethlam Gallery. Wellcome Collection. National Review of Live Art. Arnolfini. Fierce Festival (x4). Liberty Festival. Nottingham Contemporary. SWG3. Peacock Visual Arts. Tramway. Centre for Contemporary Art Glasgow. ICA. Barbican (UK)
Grand Rapids Art Museum (USA), Spielart Festival, Politik im Freien Theater, No Limits Festival, HAU, Schwankhalle, Tanz Tendez (Germany), Gessnerallee/Festspiele, Les Urbanies, Museum für Gegenwartskunst, Basler Dokumentar-Tage, Theatre de l’Usine, Roxy Theatre, Far Festival, Vidy Theatre (Switzerland) Steirischer Herbst, Tanzquartier (Austria) Kaai Theatre, Vooruit/Dr Guislain Hospital (Belgium) National Gallery of Indonesia, Homo Novus, National Library of Latvia (Latvia) Short Theatre (Italy) Vårscenefest (Norway) Anti Festival (Finland) Blackwood Gallery (Canada).
For the National Health Service projects and designs have included Great Ormond Street for Children, Royal Hospital for Children & Young People, Broadmoor Hospital, Beacon Centre (Thanet), Hope and Horizon Units (Bury), Coborn Centre (Newham).
He was artist in residence at Tate Modern and Tate Britain 2016/17 with Travis Alabanza, Gal Leshem and Zinzi Minott.
He co-founded the Laboratory of Insurrectionary Imagination 2004 – 09.
He received the Paul Hamlyn Breakthrough Fund 2018.
the vacuum cleaner’s Studio Madlove is an Arts Council National Portfolio Organisation 23-27
the vacuum cleaner has come second in every art prize he has ever been nominated for including The Anti Festival Live Art Prize. Except once, but then he didn’t know he was nominated so didn’t turn up for the award ceremony.