Skip to content Loading
Land Sea and Air I by Antony Gormley
Last Tree by Antony Gormley
Tree Seed by Antony Gormley
Three Places by Antony Gormley
Sleeping Place by Antony Gormley
Form and Content by Antony Gormley
Natural Selection by Antony Gormley
Bread Line by Antony Gormley
b. 1950 · British

Antony Gormley

Antony Gormley's artistic practice is deeply connected to his own physical form. Before committing to art, he spent several years in India and Sri Lanka studying Buddhism, which significantly shaped his understanding of the body and its relationship to space. This personal exploration directly led to his distinctive method of using himself as the model for many of his well-known sculptures.

Held in 6 museums

Portrait of Antony Gormley

Biography

Beginning in the late 1970s, Gormley started casting his own body, creating figures that explore universal human experience rather than individual portraiture. His work often addresses themes of identity, memory, and collective humanity. A notable early example is "Field for the British Isles" (1993), an installation featuring thousands of small terracotta figures, each hand-formed by a community in St Helens.

Gormley gained widespread public recognition with monumental works like the "Angel of the North" (1998) near Gateshead, a steel sculpture with a 54-metre wingspan. Another significant project, "Another Place" (2005), installed 100 cast-iron figures along Crosby Beach in Merseyside, each facing the sea. These figures, again based on his own body, interact with the changing tides and weather, inviting contemplation on human presence and absence. He received the Turner Prize in 1994.

Timeline

  1. 1950Born in the United Kingdom.
  2. 1970Studied Buddhism in India and Sri Lanka.
  3. 1970Began exploring the body and its relationship to space.
  4. 1970Began casting his own body for sculptures.
  5. 1993"Field for the British Isles" installation created.
  6. 1994Received the Turner Prize.
  7. 1998"Angel of the North" sculpture erected near Gateshead.
  8. 2005"Another Place" installed at Crosby Beach, Merseyside.

Plan your visit to see Antony Gormley →

Frequently Asked Questions

  • What is Antony Gormley known for?
    Antony Gormley is widely known for his sculptures, installations and public artworks. These works investigate the relationship of the human body to space. His art has developed the potential opened up by sculpture since the 1960s.
  • What is Antony Gormley's most famous work?
    Antony Gormley, born in London in 1950, is known for his sculptures, installations and public artworks that consider the relationship between the human body and space. While he has created many pieces that have gained recognition, his most famous is likely *Angel of the North* (1998). This sculpture is a steel angel, 20 metres tall, with a 54-metre wingspan, located in Gateshead, England. Other well-known works include *Another Place* (1997), consisting of cast-iron figures facing the sea near Liverpool, and *Sound II* (1986), a figure in the crypt of Winchester Cathedral, often partially submerged in water. Gormley's *Inside Australia* (2003) is installed at Lake Ballard, Western Australia. He was awarded the Turner Prize in 1994, and he has been a Royal Academician since 2003.
  • What should I know about Antony Gormley's prints?
    Antony Gormley is primarily known as a sculptor, but he also produces prints, often in limited editions. When buying a print, it is important to understand printmaking conventions. An edition is a set of identical prints made from the same block or blocks. Editions can be 'open' (unlimited) or 'limited' (with a fixed number of impressions). The artist decides whether to limit an edition; it is not dictated by the medium. A woodblock, for example, can produce a very large number of prints if cared for properly. Thomas Bewick's wood engraving of Newcastle was printed 900,000 times. Limited edition prints are numbered. The edition number is written on the bottom left margin of the print, as a fraction. The print number appears above the edition size. The print's title is in the centre, and the artist's signature is on the right. These markings are usually in pencil. These conventions are widely respected among printmakers. Although there are no specific legal rules governing printmaking, the Trade Descriptions Act of 1968 requires commercial sellers to describe their products truthfully.
  • What style or movement did Antony Gormley belong to?
    Antony Gormley's sculptures, installations, and public artworks explore the relationship between the human body and space. His practice builds on developments in sculpture since the 1960s. Gormley critically engages with his own body and those of others, confronting questions about humanity's place in nature and the cosmos. His work attempts to identify art as a place of becoming, where new behaviours, thoughts, and feelings can arise. Gormley's sculptures often evoke emotions connected to their surroundings. *Sound II* (1986), a lead and fibreglass figure in Winchester Cathedral, is often partially submerged by water. *Another Place* (1997) features cast-iron figures facing the sea near Liverpool. Permanent public works include *Angel of the North* (Gateshead, England), *Inside Australia* (Lake Ballard, Western Australia), and *Exposure* (Lelystad, The Netherlands). Gormley was awarded the Turner Prize in 1994. He has been a Royal Academician since 2003 and a British Museum Trustee since 2007.
  • What techniques or materials did Antony Gormley use?
    Antony Gormley is known for his sculptures, installations and public artworks that consider the human body's relationship to space. He often uses his own body to create works that explore fundamental questions about humanity's place in nature. Gormley's work involves a range of materials and techniques. Many of his sculptures are cast in iron, such as the figures in *Another Place* (1997) near Liverpool. *Sound II* (1986), a pensive figure in Winchester Cathedral, is made of lead and fibreglass. The lost-wax process is often used to create bronze replicas from plaster or wax models. This involves making a negative plaster mould, pouring hot wax inside to create a copy, and then creating a solid core inside the wax copy. The wax is melted out, and molten bronze is poured into the space, creating a bronze version of the original sculpture. After the bronze cools, the mould is broken open, and the sculpture is filed and smoothed.
  • What was Antony Gormley known for?
    Antony Gormley is known for his sculptures, installations and public artworks. These often explore the relationship of the human body to space. His work builds on sculptural developments since the 1960s. He critically engages with his own body and the bodies of others. His art confronts questions about humanity's place in nature and the cosmos. Gormley sees art as a space for new behaviours, thoughts, and feelings to emerge. Gormley's permanent public works include *Angel of the North* (Gateshead), *Another Place* (Crosby Beach), *Inside Australia* (Lake Ballard, Western Australia), and *Exposure* (Lelystad, The Netherlands). His 1986 sculpture *Sound II*, a lead and fibreglass figure in Winchester Cathedral, is often partially submerged due to flooding in the crypt. This work embodies Gormley's interest in the relationship between the human form, space, and the spiritual. Gormley received the Turner Prize in 1994, the South Bank Prize for Visual Art in 1999, the Bernhard Heiliger Award for Sculpture in 2007, the Obayashi Prize in 2012 and the Praemium Imperiale in 2013. He was made an OBE in 1997 and knighted in 2014. He has been a Royal Academician since 2003 and a British Museum Trustee since 2007.
  • When did Antony Gormley live and work?
    Antony Gormley is a British sculptor, born in 1950. He is best known for his sculptures that explore the human form and its relationship to space. He often uses his own body as the basis for his sculptures, creating life-size or larger-than-life figures out of materials such as iron, steel, and concrete. Gormley studied archaeology, anthropology and art history at Trinity College, Cambridge, from 1968 to 1971. He then studied sculpture at Central Saint Martins in London from 1974 to 1977, and at the Slade School of Fine Art from 1977 to 1979. One of his early works is *Three Places*, 1983, made of lead, fibreglass, and plaster. Gormley continues to live and work in the United Kingdom.
  • Where can I see Antony Gormley's work?
    Antony Gormley's artwork can be viewed in various locations. Within London, several institutions hold pieces, including the British Museum, the National Gallery, the National Portrait Gallery, the Saatchi Gallery, Tate Modern, and the Victoria and Albert Museum. Outside of London, but still within the UK, you can find his work at the National Museum of Wales (Cardiff), the National Gallery of Scotland and the Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art (Edinburgh), the Burrell Collection (Glasgow), the Jersey Museum and Art Gallery (St Helier), and the Leeds City Art Gallery. Further afield, Gormley's art is held in museums such as the Musée National Fernand Léger (Biot, France), the Musée d’Orsay (Paris), and the Muzeul de Arta (Craiova, Romania).
  • Where was Antony Gormley from?
    Antony Gormley was born in London in 1950. He is known for his sculptures, installations and public artworks. His art explores the relationship between the human body and space. Gormley's work considers how human beings relate to nature and the cosmos. His pieces have been exhibited in the UK and internationally, including at the Zentrum Paul Klee, Bern; the State Hermitage Museum, St Petersburg; and the Hayward Gallery, London. He has also participated in major group shows such as the Venice Biennale and Documenta 8 in Kassel, Germany. Permanent public works by Gormley include the *Angel of the North* in Gateshead, *Another Place* at Crosby Beach, *Inside Australia* at Lake Ballard, Western Australia, and *Exposure* in Lelystad, The Netherlands. Gormley was awarded the Turner Prize in 1994, the South Bank Prize for Visual Art in 1999, and the Praemium Imperiale in 2013, among other honours. He was made an Officer of the British Empire (OBE) in 1997 and knighted in 2014. He is also an Honorary Fellow of the Royal Institute of British Architects, an Honorary Doctor of the University of Cambridge, a Fellow of Trinity and Jesus Colleges, Cambridge, a Royal Academician since 2003, and a British Museum Trustee since 2007.
  • Who did Antony Gormley influence?
    Antony Gormley's artistic approach, particularly his use of body casts and exploration of the human form in relation to space, sets him apart. His work is influenced by Catholicism and vipassana meditation. His sculptures often evoke empathy and contemplation, inviting viewers to consider their place in the world. Gormley's work, such as the *Angel of the North* (1998), explores the relationship between the human form, space, and the spiritual. One artist whose work has some relation to Gormley is April Gornik. She studied conceptual art, but moved into light-filled imagined views. She has cited the influence of the Roman Catholic Church on her work, as well as artists such as Vermeer, Arthur Dove, Charles Burchfield, and Emily Carr.
  • Who influenced Antony Gormley?
    Antony Gormley's sculptures, installations and public artworks explore the human body's relationship to space. His work builds on developments in sculpture since the 1960s. He engages critically with his own body and those of others, confronting questions about humanity's place in nature and the cosmos. Gormley's influences include sculptors such as P Archipenko, Donatello, Henri Gaudier-Brzeska, Alberto Giacometti and George Segal. These artists, like Gormley, worked with the human form. Gormley seeks to identify art as a place of becoming. He hopes his work will allow new behaviours, thoughts and feelings to arise. His sculptures often evoke powerful emotions connected to their surroundings. One example is *Sound II* (1986), a lead and fibreglass figure in Winchester Cathedral. The figure stands in the crypt, which is often flooded, exploring the relationship of the human form to space and the spiritual. Another example is *Another Place* (1997) near Liverpool, where cast-iron figures face the sea.
  • Who was Antony Gormley?
    Antony Gormley, born in London in 1950, is known for his sculptures, installations, and public artworks. His pieces explore the relationship between the human body and space, often engaging with his own body and those of others. Gormley's art considers the place of human beings in relation to nature. He sees art as a space for new behaviours, thoughts, and feelings to emerge. Gormley's work has been widely exhibited in the UK and internationally. Some permanent public works include *Angel of the North* (Gateshead, England), *Another Place* (Crosby Beach, England), *Inside Australia* (Lake Ballard, Western Australia) and *Exposure* (Lelystad, The Netherlands). His *Sound II* (1986), a lead and fibreglass figure in Winchester Cathedral, stands in the flooded crypt, evoking emotions tied to its surroundings. Gormley was awarded the Turner Prize in 1994, the South Bank Prize for Visual Art in 1999, the Bernhard Heiliger Award for Sculpture in 2007, the Obayashi Prize in 2012 and the Praemium Imperiale in 2013. He was made an Officer of the British Empire (OBE) in 1997 and knighted in 2014. He has also been the subject of BBC documentaries.

Sources

Editorial draws on the following primary and tertiary references for Antony Gormley.

  1. [1] book Antony Gormley, Antony Gormley on Sculpture Used for: biography.
  2. [2] book Beard, Lee, 1973- author, Butler, Adam, author; Van Cleave, Claire, author; Fortenberry, Diane, author; Stirling, Susan, author, Beard, Lee, 1973- author, Butler, Adam, author; Van Cleave, Claire, author; Fortenberry, Diane, author; Stirling, Susan, author - The Art Book_ New Edition, Mini Format Used for: biography.

Editorial overseen by Solis Prints. Sources verified 2026-07-02. Click a source for details, or hover over [N] in the page above to preview.

Keep exploring

Your cart
Your cart is empty
Have an account? Log in to check out faster.
Continue shopping Continue shopping
Cart total £0.00 GBP
Product image Product information Quantity Product total