Fire sale Britain: Mike Nelson on why he turned the Tate into a big salvage yard

The artist scoured asset-stripping websites for the things British companies toss out as they close. He relives his six-month journey into a country in declineMike Nelson is feeling his age. He’s halfway through installing his new work, in the soaring Duveen galleries of Tate Britain, and as we sit down to chat, I notice the support strapped to his arm. The artist gives me a quick run-through of all the dislocations, injuries and strains that decades of vigorous construction work, all in t