Turner Prize-nominated artist opens exhibition – and the only artwork is a 10-tonne pile of rope

David Shrigley’s piece is made up of 10 tonnes of discarded rope

Artist David Shrigley with his new artwork ‘Exhibition of Old Rope’ at the Stephen Friedman Gallery in central London. Lucy North/PA Wire

Artist David Shrigley with his new artwork ‘Exhibition of Old Rope’ at the Stephen Friedman Gallery in central London. Lucy North/PA Wire

A Turner Prize-nominated artist has launched an exhibition where the only artwork is a 10-tonne pile of discarded rope priced at £1 million.

David Shrigley spent months scouring the country for unwanted material to prove he really can get money for old rope.

All lengths gathered for the installation – from cruise liner mooring lines to slim cords used for crab and lobster pots – were treated and cleaned at Shrigley’s studio to prepare it for public exhibition.

He said: “This exhibition started with an idiom. Old rope has no use. It’s also hard to recycle, so there’s a lot of it lying around.

Artist David Shrigley with his new artwork ‘Exhibition of Old Rope’ at the Stephen Friedman Gallery in central London. Lucy North/PA Wire

“I thought, what if I turn that into a literal exhibition of old rope? And then say, yes, this is art, and yes, you can buy it for £1 million.”

Exhibition Of Old Rope will run at the Stephen Friedman Gallery in London from November 13 to December 20.