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Children of the Revolution

Episode 3 of 3

Alastair Sooke looks at the 20th century's mixture of innovation and shock and talks to Damien Hirst, Rachel Whiteread, Antony Gormley and Anthony Caro.

'Sculpture has changed more in the last hundred years,' says Alastair Sooke, 'than in the previous thirty thousand.' The third and last episode of the series tells the dramatic story of a century of innovation, scandal, shock and creativity.

It begins with the moment at the turn of the 20th century when young sculptors ceased visiting the Elgin Marbles at the British Museum and looked instead at the 'primitive' works of Africa and the Pacific islands. The result was an artistic revolution spearheaded by Eric Gill and Jacob Epstein that would climax in the anti-sculptural gestures of Gilbert & George and Damien Hirst.

Yet for all the provocation and occasional excesses of conceptualism, sculpture has never enjoyed such popularity. From the memorials of World War One to the landmarks of Antony Gormley and Rachel Whiteread, sculpture remains the art form that speaks most directly and powerfully to the nation.

The programme climaxes with a series of encounters between Alastair and leading sculptors Damien Hirst, Rachel Whiteread, Antony Gormley and Anthony Caro.

1 hour

Last on

Tue 7 Mar 2023 00:00
BBC Four

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Clip

Music Played

Timings (where shown) are from the start of the programme in hours and minutes

  • 00:37

    Bud Flanagan, Chesney Allen

    Underneath The Arches

  • 00:38

    Nirvana

    Smells Like Teen Spirit

Credits

Presenter Alastair Sooke
Executive Producer Jonty Claypole
Series Producer Mark Halliley
Director Mark Halliley

Broadcasts