British artist Ian Berry has built an international reputation on an unlikely medium: ordinary denim. The technique earned him a fitting nickname — Denimu — and for years his work has been a fixture in leading galleries across Europe and the United States.
To build a single piece, Berry sources denim from brands and factories around the world, then assembles it like a collage — sorting fragments by tone and shade before layering, gluing, or stitching them into place. Bleach and stencils round out his toolkit, allowing him to carve in highlights and shadow. The results are startlingly precise: even up close, the tonal control and rendering of light make it hard to believe you’re looking at fabric rather than paint.
Much of his subject matter draws on scenes of everyday London life, though he has occasionally turned his attention abroad. In 2019, for instance, his piece Hotel California was exhibited at the Catto Gallery in London.
Berry hasn’t confined himself to two dimensions, either. In 2018 he moved into installation art, crafting an entire denim-built environment titled The Secret Garden.
The pandemic didn’t stop him — even after his studio was temporarily shuttered. Lockdown became inspiration: Berry recreated his own living room entirely out of denim. That piece anchors his latest exhibition, Splendid Isolation, currently on view at the Museum Rijswijk in the Netherlands.