Daniel Lismore’s new exhibition is a love letter towards living – and speaking – your personal truth.
Daniel Lismore is a defined icon on the cultural scene in London. Growing up in Coventry and moving to London at the age of 17, Lismore made a decision to express his true identity and creativity by redefining himself into a true work of art – living and breathing as one. Creating a detailed enigma of many talents, the artist has collaborated with icons and cultural mavericks of many genres, from Mariah Carey to Kim Jones and Vivienne Westwood.
In his illustrious journey, Lismore has experienced multiple highs and lows in his career and personal life, reflecting society’s ever changing perception of beauty and acceptance. Celebrating over 20 years of career, bravery and beauty, Daniel Lismore has curated the most important project so far – his journey in life, filled with both the good, and the bad, in a specifically curated exhibition titled ‘BE YOURSELF, EVERYONE ELSE IS ALREADY TAKEN’ at the Herbert Art Gallery and Museum.
In the travelling exhibition’s most personal and important stop in his hometown of Coventry, Lismore reflects back on his beautiful and notable life journey so far, speaking about his favourite moments, as well as the most character-defining ones, and the vital importance of living – and speaking – your truth.
Angel: Personally, how have you grown in the 20 years of embracing and living life as an artwork?
Daniel Lismore: I started living as art aged 17. I had just moved to London, discovered the nightlife scene and it felt like anything was possible for the first time in my life. People around me were expressing their true selves in a way I had never seen before growing up in Coventry. Looking back, I realise I was naive and I really didn’t know much when I moved to London, apart from a few things I learnt in college and from my parents. I had always experimented with looks and styles, and my parents had always been supportive of that, but moving to London opened my eyes to the larger world, full of endless ideas and inspirations. I met amazing, exciting people who taught me so much, encouraged me to think and believe in myself, and live as I wanted to do. I met horrible people too – and in many ways learned as much from them, as from my friends.
People have always intrigued me. When I read or hear about Warhol I relate to how he looked at the world and the people around him. Back then I think people misunderstood my shyness for being rude.
I came to London after being scouted as a model, but back then I had to hide that I was gay – the agency asked me to act straight to get work. A few bad things happened as some people in the industry abused my boundaries. I accepted it, I thought it was normal, and what being a model was, but looking back I was going through hell by not being allowed to be the real me. Nowadays people pay a lot of money for individuality, but back then not so much, so I wore a lot of masks to hide my identity when I went out.
We didn’t have much to look on the internet back then. I think people were more prejudiced towards people like me even in the fashion and art industry. By day I was a straight seeming male model, but I was relishing being my true self by night. My outfits got bigger. I became living sculpture. People started to compare me to Leigh Bowery, but I had no idea who he was for years. When I did discover the work of Leigh, I was dressed in his clothes. Designer Kim Jones showed me Leigh’s work in person and I was intrigued. I had a period of provoking with performance, I wanted to twist narratives, like many angry young people. To be honest, it wasn’t for me and I am not a performance artist, so that quickly stopped. Living sculpture is something that is very different. It’s more real because it becomes your life. But I’ve learned a lot over the past 20 years as you can imagine. I think when it first started out, it was about exploration and hiding. I call it ‘ostrich syndrome’. You’re really tall, dressed in feathers and you want no one to see you, so you stick your head in the ground thinking ‘you’ are invisible. I’d run around in anything I could find that made a look. Nothing had a meaning. It was like freedom with painting, draping, sculpting on my body and exhibiting it in a club. I think many people thought it was about me trying to outdo everyone with looks but it was never the intention. I levelled up my looks when I met Nicola Formichetti. He taught me a lot about construction and layering. I continued and I split off from the scene, and created my own, crafting a beautiful world where anyone could be themselves, and I partied for years every night non-stop and sometimes through the day.
When I was 20 I went to Kenya and worked for an NGO, who work with people with HIV, Malaria, AIDS, TB, famine relief and women’s rights. I saw the world very differently after that, as it had a big effect on me. I knew from then that a large part of my life would be dedicated to activism. Over the years I have been asked to do projects with people like the Terrence Higgins Trust and The National AIDS foundation, and these organisations welcomed me, and for the first time I felt truly vindicated in how I was choosing to live. Back then people looked down on those who dressed up in the clubs – the immense creativity being displayed was not appreciated at all. Being acknowledged by the National AIDS Foundation, when they asked me if I’d make something for their auction, really gave me confidence and led me to campaign for many causes I believe in. I knew that my art could draw attention in a positive and constructive way to the charities and causes that I believed in. From then, I had a purpose, and that purpose was to be an activist for anyone who needs help. Because of the circles that I’m privileged to be in, I can use my platform, my time and my soul to fight for many things. If I can’t help, I very often know someone who can.
One thing people often don’t understand about me is that I am actually very shy. People often mistake it for rudeness, but I am actually a shy person. When I was asked to deliver a TED Talk in 2019 on the main stage in Vancouver, it took me a while to agree. But I’m so glad I did as it was like an epiphany for me. As I stood on that stage, I talked about spending years trying to be like others but how it didn’t work, as it’s a lot of hard work not being yourself. As I was asking questions to the audience I was answering them in my head: “Who are you?” “How many versions of you are there?” “Are you using them all to your advantage?” And only then I really knew that it was okay to be me, that I was the person I need to be, but it took so many years to get to that stage. So many years of receiving abuse, thrown aside and being considered an outcast. I got rid of my imposter syndrome, which plagued me for years, on that day, on the TEDx main stage.
Angel: How did your idea behind the exhibition grow? What were your starting points behind it?
Daniel Lismore: It all started around the time I was working with Mariah Carey and dressing her. I was working with my best friend, Sorapol on a fashion brand and I just decided that I wanted to leave as I had done as much as I could there. I left and all of a sudden I had nothing. My face was on the billboards in Times Square and on Oxford Street for an H&M campaign but I was homeless and jobless. I went to the house of Parliament with Pamela Anderson, Vivienne Westwood and Joe Corre for ‘Cool Earth’. Joe invited me back to his house for a drink and a catch up, as we were old pals. He said “Mate where are you living?”, and I was so ashamed to say nowhere. He gave me a room and that week he went away. I called my mum and said “You’re not going to hear from me for three days”, as I was feeling very low. I actually contemplated not being here much longer but something got me through those thoughts. I turned off all the electricity and the Internet. As I sat down with eight pieces of paper, thinking “You can fill these in with ideas, and one of them is going to be your future”. At the time I had a storage unit, which needed to be emptied as I couldn’t pay the bills. I fantasised about creating an exhibition, which I have been thinking about for quite a while. On one of the pieces of paper I started to draw and I realised I wore a lot of armour – literal armour – and also garments as metaphorical armour. I’ve always been drawn to the terracotta warriors, who from a distance all look similar, but actually are all individuals. As inspiration, I drew some of the outfits that I’ve worn over the years and gave the different names and different ranks.
I wanted infinity mirrors to show it was a continuous ounce of ego, as I thought I would be the emperor that they were protecting, but I later created one. I went out to a party and I met Rafael Gomes, while he was a curator at Westwood. We had party talk, and I talked to him about what I’d been drawing and planning. I thought nothing would come from it, as party talk usually doesn’t lead to anything. I said I’d send him the details and he told me that he was going to the Savannah College of Art and Design to curate a museum exhibition. I sent the email and within a week he came and saw the boxes of garments. As an artist you usually hear ‘NO’ and are knocked back, but he said yes to all of my ideas. He told me there was a space between Oscar de La Renta and Carolina Herrera at Scad Fash Museum, so before I could really believe it, everything was being shipped to Atlanta. I built the exhibition in two weeks exactly and it was a major success. The show has now travelled to major venues in 6 countries and each time new works are added.
For the recent Coventry exhibition, which is part of their City of Culture programme, I added all the work I had done for the English National Opera. I also included a timeline of my life and the things that I have done. I’ve been given a lot of art, collecting over the years, so my whole house moved into the museum. Einar Örn, who is responsible for some of Bjork’s sounds, created a soundscape recording the noises of the sculptures when the show was up in Reykjavík. I use my TED talk as narration in one of the rooms. There are now six rooms, and one of them explores colour texture and shape, and another explores my opera work. I was always scared featuring my activism work in other countries, but the City of Culture team told me to go for it, so there’s a room all about the activism that I’ve done over the years. One room is dedicated to nightlife, part in queer culture, and the final room brings you to the original idea of the show, how it was on paper when I thought it up in 2015. Every room is specifically scented to go with the works.
Angel: What are some of your favourite pieces in the exhibition?
Daniel Lismore: Some of my favourite pieces were given to me by Boy George, specifically his hats. He came to see the show and saw the hat in one of the sculptures, and quoted Joney Mitchell saying “Just don’t do it like me”. I’ve been given some beautiful jewellery over the years, some of it being over 2000 years old. The coat I made for Mariah Carey that she wore down the River Thames is draped on the shoulders of one of the pieces for me that brings so many memories as I wore it to the Absolutely Fabulous premiere movie and destroyed with champagne on the streets of Soho. Many of the pieces that were made for me by many of my friends from all over the world are in the show, and to me, they are the most important.
Angel: The exhibition is taking place in your hometown of Coventry, how would you describe the art and culture scene there?
Daniel Lismore: One time, Lady Godiva got on a horse naked, and rode around the city in protest over her husband raising the taxes for the people. She’s still an inspiration to many in the city today and I have met a lot of young activist art groups sparking a specific mood in the youth. A great landmark is the Coventry Cathedral, which I believe is one of the most beautiful buildings in the whole country, currently hosting the Tate collection exhibition of sculptures. Some of the best brutalist architecture, like the elephant swimming baths stand over the beautiful skyline. As the city was blitzed in the war, the people of the city rebuilt it in a brutalist manner with a lot of concrete, until 10 years ago when it completely transformed. The nightlife scene has always been very cool and edgy, giving birth to The Specials and other alternative rock groups. Since the City of Culture opening, Coventry has flourished, as artists have been out in full force and everyone has been inspired in so many brilliant ways.
Angel: You are hosting a very special ball on May 1st in Coventry, can you tell us more about it?
Daniel Lismore: There’s always been a vibrant music scene in Coventry, running from ‘The Specials’ all the way to rave culture. I curated it with Ghost Town who are responsible for the best nightlife events in the city. There are a few surprise guests coming, and we also going to have DJs Eclair Fifi, Yang, Dee Cleo, Dj Fansnap, Cazafri and Daniel Brown, alongside a performance by pop star Eminzada who’s new song “Beautiful Long Hair” is actually about my hair! Drag Syndrome is opening the runway show with a performance followed by local fashion group Haus of Kraft. The super talented Anne Sophie Cochevelou will be dressing guests in her wearable art works, crafting a beautiful aesthetic. I also just found out Boy George, Hilary Alexander and Zandra Rhodes decided they want to come party with us in the museum, which is so exciting!
Angel: What is next on the horizon for you, both creatively and personally?
Daniel Lismore: I have not had a personal life for about 20 years as it’s all been very public, especially since social media happened. I’d really like to work more in costume for operas, crafting on stage garments, and also movies. I had an amazing time, consulting on the Rocket Man movie poster alongside David Lachapelle and also sat with director Bill Condon, advising him on Disney’s Beauty and The Beast. The film world is an area that I personally feel very comfortable in. But really, I just want to work on things that are creative, meaningful to me, and that make people feel good.
One of the other things I have been working on is perfume. I’ve been a perfumer for over 15 years and have been a little scared to declare, but my dear friends Björk, Kate Moss, Kesha, Macy Gray and Vivienne Westwood have all worn and loved the perfumes I have made. My idea further is to sell them as sculptural artworks, as I see perfume as another form of art, just made using a different part of the body. I decided I would sell my artworks as well, so I’m currently working on a new series. I must say, I was extremely fortunate to miss the part of being an artist, where you struggle to find a gallery to sell your work, as my work went straight into museums. All of my existing work currently is for the public. In lockdown, I decided I needed to monetise my brand to fuel my activism so I think that’s going to be the future for me going forward. Other exciting things include writing a TV show about my life and working on a few more books, one being a children’s book. My original book “Be Yourself Everyone Else Is Already Taken” brought me so much joy, and so many others joy, so would love to focus on spreading joy all around.
Daniel Lismore’s exhibition “BE YOURSELF, EVERYONE IS ALREADY TAKEN” runs until the 26th June at the Herbert Art Gallery & Museum in Coventry. For more information, visit www.daniellismore.com/exhibition
