7 OF 8 
Marc Quinn ('Self')
7 of 8 portraits on display in Room 38 at the National Portrait Gallery
© Marc Quinn; photograph: Todd-White Art Photography; Courtesy Jay Jopling/ White Cube (London)
- Larger Image
- Recent Acquisition
Marc Quinn ('Self')
by Marc Quinn
blood (artist's), stainless steel, glass, perspex and refrigeration equipment, 2006
80 3/4 in. x 25 5/8 in. 25 5/8 in. (2050 mm x 650 mm x 650mm)
Purchased with help from The Art Fund, the Henry Moore Foundation, Terry and Jean de Gunzburg and Project B Contemporary Art, 2009
Primary Collection
NPG 6863
Sitter
Marc Quinn (1964-), Artist. Sitter in 5 portraits, Artist of 5 portraits.
Artist
Marc Quinn (1964-), Artist. Artist of 5 portraits, Sitter in 5 portraits.
This Portrait
A self-portrait of the artist Marc Quinn cast in several pints of his frozen blood. Described by Quinn as a ‘frozen moment on lifesupport’, the work is carefully maintained in a refrigeration unit, reminding the viewer of the fragility of existence. The artist makes a new version of Self every five years, each of which documents Quinn’s own physical transformation and deterioration.
Subjects & Themes
Contemporary tour
Recent acquisitions tour
Self-portraits
Self-portraits tour
On display in Room 38 at the National Portrait Gallery
