Grayson Perry and the Art of Being Respectable (2026): Traveling exhibition. Mexico 2026-2027

Amparo and Manuel Foundation, in collaboration with the British Council, presents Grayson Perry and the Art of Being Respectable, the first solo exhibition in Mexico by the acclaimed British artist Grayson Perry, curated by Beth Hughes (London, United Kingdom), which will tour three different venues in Mexico throughout 2026 and 2027.

Perry (Chelmsford, United Kingdom, 1960), renowned for his ceramic vessels that combine traditional craftsmanship with provocative imagery, places social class—that great British obsession—at the center of his work. Through vivid colors and a direct, incisive visual language, Perry explores how taste and status shape our identity and sense of belonging.

Raised in Essex during the Thatcher era, Perry experienced firsthand the promise (and tensions) of upward social mobility. He won the Turner Prize in 2003, accepting it as his alter ego Claire, whose presence challenges gender and class norms, positioning individuality as an act of resistance.

This exhibition focuses on *The Vanity of Small Differences* (2012), a series of six tapestries that traces the rise and fall of Tim Rakewell—a contemporary reworking of Hogarth’s *The Rake’s Progress*, also featured in the exhibition. With multiple references to art history (Bellini, Grünewald, Masaccio, Van Eyck, Gainsborough, Van der Weyden), the tapestries trace Tim’s life from a working-class childhood in northeastern England to technological wealth, upper-class life, and, ultimately, his death.

The exhibition is rounded out by two key works: Village of the Penians (2001), a ceramic piece that links sexual taboos and power hierarchies, and Map of Nowhere (2008), a satirical world map inspired by Thomas More’s Utopia that challenges moral certainties and contemporary values.

The tapestries reward the attentive viewer: every symbol and detail invites us to ask ourselves how we relate to the hierarchies of taste and power that Perry portrays in contemporary Britain.

Venues:

1. San Luis Potosí Museum of Contemporary Art
September 25–November 1, 2026
C. Morelos 235, Historic Center, 78000 San Luis Potosí, S.L.P.

Hours:
Tuesday–Saturday, 10:00 a.m.–6:00 p.m.
Sunday 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.
Closed Mondays
*Your museum admission ticket includes entry to this exhibition