The artist Michael Craig-Martin was born in Dublin,Ireland in 1941. He grew up and was educated in the USA, studying Fine Art at Yale University. Craig-Martin moved to Britain on completion of his studies in 1966.

In the early 1970s Craig-Martin exhibited the seminal piece Oak Tree (now in the Tate collection). The work consists of a glass of water standing on a shelf attached to the gallery wall next to which is a text using a semiotic argument to explain why it is in fact an oak tree.

Craig-Martin's style of detached conceptualism, minimal construction by the artist and the use of readymade techniques inspired by Marcel Duchamp had a marked impression on his students. As a senior tutor at Goldsmiths' College, he was a significant influence on the emerging YBA generation.

Later work

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Craig-Martin's later works have used a stylised drawing technique depicting everyday household objects.

1941 births | Living people | British artists | Contemporary artists | Academics of Goldsmiths College