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A Turner Prize-winning British artist is to exhibit in Harrogate’s Mercer Gallery in an event which will see the main gallery filled with 900 balls.

Drawn from a national touring collection jointly owned by Tate and the National Galleries of Scotland, ARTIST ROOMS: Martin Creed will see works by one of the most influential and exciting artists working today installed in the gallery in an exciting coup for Harrogate’s cultural scene.

As provocative as he is successful, Creed came to international attention following his 2001 Turner Prize win for installations exhibited the preceding year, which included the controversial Work No. 227 The lights going on and off (2000).

At the time, media interest in the piece by Creed – which comprised an empty room in which the lights were switched on and off at five-second intervals – exploded, making the conceptual artist world famous.

Artist Martin Creed came to international attention following his 2001 Turner Prize win for his provocative installations.

Curator of Mercer Art Gallery, Karen Southworth said: “We are thrilled to be showing work by such a well-known and influential artist whose work is shown round the world.

"Yes, Martin Creed is deliberately provocative and challenging, and yes, he’s playful − but by working in this way he also shapes a whole new level of serious thought.

"Some people may be surprised or even affronted, but if you allow yourself to go with it and give the works a bit of breathing space you will start to unpack and discover some of his deeper ideas and deliberate intentions.”

Running from April 1 to July 2, the exhibition at the publicly-owned Mercer Gallery in Harrogate will feature a wide range of the Turner Prize winner’s sculpture, neon, painting and video works.

Showing in Harrogate - Work No. 370 Balls. Martin Creed. National Galleries of Scotland. Purchased with the Iain Paul Fund and assistance from the Art Fund 2005.

The largest and most visceral work to be shown at the Mercer is Work No. 370 Balls (2004), a vast installation taking over the Mercer’s entire main gallery incorporating 900 balls of different scale, weight and texture.

A pathway through the balls will enable viewers to immerse themselves in the experience.

Admission to ARTIST ROOMS: Martin Creed at Mercer Gallery will be free.

The gallery is accessible to wheelchair users.

For more information, visit: www.visitharrogate.co.uk/mercernow

Major coup for Harrogate as Turner Prize winning artist is to fill up Mercer Gallery with 900 balls