Toby Victor Mott British artist, designer and historian of punk culture Date of Birth: 12.01.1964 Country: Great Britain

1. Toby Mott: British Artist, Designer, and Punk Culture Historian
2. Early Life and Education
3. Rise in the Creative Scene
4. Artistic Career and 'Grey Organisation'
5. Personal Life and Recent Works

Toby Mott: British Artist, Designer, and Punk Culture Historian

Toby Mott, born on January 12, 1964, in London, is a renowned British artist, designer, and historian of punk culture. He gained recognition through his work with the artist collective 'Grey Organisation', which was active in the 1980s, and his fashion brand 'Toby Pimlico'. Recently, Mott has received acclaim for his 'Mott Collection', a collection of political ephemera and artifacts from British punk rock, featuring over 1000 posters, flyers, and fanzines.

Early Life and Education

Toby Mott attended several schools, including Pimlico Comprehensive School, before enrolling at Westminster Kingsway College. He was a member of the youth anarchist organization 'Anarchist Street Army' (ASA), responsible for disturbances in the Pimlico district of London.

Rise in the Creative Scene

In the early 1980s, Mott resided in Fitzrovia, a favored location for many creative personalities such as Boy George, Mark Lebon, Fiona Russell-Powell, and others. During this time, Mott appeared in several films directed by British filmmaker Derek Jarman, including the drama 'The Angelic Conversation'.

Artistic Career and 'Grey Organisation'

In the late 1980s and early 1990s, Toby Mott spent time in New York and Los Angeles, working as an art director for MTV. He directed music videos for various groups, including 'The Rolling Stones', 'Public Enemy', and 'A Tribe Called Quest'.

Mott became one of the founders of the London-based art group 'Grey Organisation' (GO), which operated from 1983 to 1991. 'GO' was involved in film and video production and participated in over 20 exhibitions. In 1986, the group staged an act of 'art terrorism', splattering gray paint on the shop windows of several galleries on Cork Street, the center of the art world in London. As a result, the members of 'GO' were arrested and temporarily banned from entering central London. The group then relocated to New York, where they participated in an exhibition in the East Village.

After the dissolution of the art group in 1991, Mott decided to focus on solo projects. He exhibited his works at galleries such as 'White Columns' in New York, 'Thomas Soloman Garage' in Los Angeles, and 'Interim Art' in London. For many years, his creations were represented by the Maureen Paley art gallery.

Personal Life and Recent Works

In 2000, Toby Mott was in a relationship with actress Emilia Fox. He divorced his wife, renowned hairdresser Louise Galvin, in 2008, after only one year of marriage. Mott and Galvin met through a mutual acquaintance, and she became pregnant a few months later. Their daughter was born in 2007.

In February 2011, Mott selectively presented part of his 'Mott Collection' under the title 'Crass'. The collection featured over 130 items and artifacts related to the anarchist culture of the British group 'Crass'. It included significant works by artist Gee Vaucher, directly linked to the group, as well as various art pieces, 12-inch LPs and 7-inch singles from 'Crass Records', and a complete set of the cult limited-edition magazine 'Inter-National Anthem'.

In September 2011, Toby Mott created a series of paintings inspired by the August riots in England. His rebellious works, almost all bearing the slogan 'All Cops Are Bastards', became part of the exhibition 'Unrest' held at the Vegas Gallery in London. In October 2011, a solo exhibition by Mott titled 'This Means Everything' was presented at a contemporary gallery in Knightsbridge. The exhibition included new paintings addressing the issues of today's fame and success-hungry culture against a historical backdrop of nihilism and anarchy expressed in the punk movement.

Mott's fashion brand 'Toby Pimlico' earned praise from Prince Charles. The t-shirts from Mott's fashionable venture achieved cult status after being preferred by celebrities such as Kate Moss, Sienna Miller, Geri Halliwell, and Tara Palmer-Tomkinson.