ARTFEED — Contemporary Art Intelligence

Mitch Speed Publishes First Comprehensive Study of Mark Leckey's Fiorucci Made Me Hardcore

publication · 2026-04-22

Afterall has released the first comprehensive study of Mark Leckey's 1999 video-montage Fiorucci Made Me Hardcore, written by Mitch Speed. The book is part of the One Work series, which examines artworks that have significantly shaped art history. Speed argues that Leckey's work interweaves personal and collective memory to voice class and cultural transformation during Britain's Thatcherite era. The video itself is a dreamscape vignette using purloined footage of underground dance and street culture, with sampled audio, completed just before mass online file-sharing. The publication is available via MIT Press and previewable on Google Books.

Key facts

  • Mark Leckey released Fiorucci Made Me Hardcore in 1999.
  • The work is a video-montage using archive footage of underground dance and street culture in Britain.
  • Mitch Speed wrote the first comprehensive study of the work.
  • The book is part of Afterall's One Work series.
  • Speed argues the work gives voice to class and cultural transformation during the Thatcherite era.
  • The video was completed on the eve of mass online file-sharing.
  • The publication is available in paperback with an ISBN.
  • It can be purchased via MIT Press and previewed via Google Books.

Entities

Artists

  • Mark Leckey
  • Mitch Speed

Institutions

  • Afterall
  • MIT Press
  • Google Books

Locations

  • Britain

Sources