Dismaland: Jessica Harrison on Banksy's exhibition

Banksy has unveiled his latest project Dismaland, a large-scale outdoor contemporary art exhibition at the derelict lido in the seaside town of Weston-super-Mare.

Edinburgh-based sculptor Jessica Harrison, whose intricate porcelain figurines are among the pieces displayed at the Banksy-curated show, spoke to The Skinny about the “really quite grim, pretty dismal” show, which opens to the public tomorrow.

Describing the feel of Dismaland from on site, Harrison said: “There’s an underlying feeling of playfulness about the various works but that’s not to say that there aren’t some serious issues being raised. That might make it sound a bit light, which it’s not; it’s really quite dismal in places.” As she spoke to us, a strangely atonal merry-go-round theme played, dismally, in the background. 

Dismaland, billed as ‘a festival of art, amusements and entry-level anarchism,’ opens to the public this weekend following months of secret behind-the-scenes work, and will feature artworks by some of the world’s leading contemporary artists.

Turner Prize-nominated illustrator David Shrigley, politically charged photography duo kennardphillipps – whose Here Comes Everybody show is currently on display at the Edinburgh Art Festival – and visual artist Darren Cullen, creator of the Battlefield Casualties series and the Pocket Money Loans project, will all feature at the site. Their work sits alongside pieces by Damien Hirst and Jenny Holzer, a riot van from the streets of Northern Ireland repurposed as a ‘water cannon creek,’ and ‘two juggernauts performing ballet’ courtesy of American sculptor Mike Ross.

Harrison herself only learned the full artist line-up at the press launch. She said, “One of the artists won gold at the Venice Biennale, another one makes stuff in his shed, it’s a really diverse mix of people. There’s a lot of work here. From the outside it looks quite small but inside it’s massive. It's  a complicated thing to put together; the detail in it is really amazing. There’s so much here, and it’s very well thought through; it’s just quite beautiful in a really horrible way.”

Harrison adds: “I think it’s quite an accessible exhibition in that sense, people will have a lot of fun looking round and it’s not too serious. It’s not an intimidating place to come and visit, it is channeling that theme park vibe."

The Dismaland live music line-up follows a similar vein, with a selection of politically-minded and critically-lauded acts from across the musical spectrum programmed for a series of gigs at the site. The live music line-up includes US hip-hop duo Run The Jewels, trip-hop pioneers Massive Attack, poet and rapper Kate Tempest, feminist punk rockers Pussy Riot and caustic Nottingham duo Sleaford Mods.

Dismaland is open daily from 22 August to 27 September; pre-booking for tickets begins on Fri 21 Aug.