About my work

Some highlights from my practice

Introduction

I am a freelance curator, creative producer, researcher and writer. I like to build equitable spaces for diverse artists, activists and thinkers to show work and explore cultural questions. I'm interested in challenging dominant cultural narratives through curatorial activism

Image (above) Still from The Hunter film by Kinnari Saraiya shown as part of the In the Eye of a Dream exhibition

Curatorial Practice

My curatorial practice is research based, critically and socially engaged. I’m interested in promoting and presenting work by artists from communities that are often underrepresented. I am drawn to work that speaks to lived experience, or is drawn from research and engages with politics, society and culture with a positive but critical standpoint.

Recent highlights

In the Eye of a Dream - Kinnari Saraiya at Phoenix Art Space Brighton. This exhibition, the first I brought in to PAS in my new role as curator, draws on research carried out by the artist at the Royal Anthropological Institute. The research revealed how colonial powers used anthropology to study and control native populations by analysing collected dreams for signs of rebellion. Saraiya’s work reimagines these by drawing on indigenous perspectives that view dreams as gateways to alternate realities and transformative experiences.

Manifestations - various artists at the Attenborough Centre for the Creative Arts. This exhibition was the outcome of a two-year research project called Full Stack Feminism in Digital Humanities, for which I was a research curator. Manifestations drew on one of the projects major research questions, 'what are the opportunities afforded by decentring traditional voices in digital humanities’. The artists selected were queer, working class, of colour, trans and so on - bringing very different perspectives to the question

Image (R) - Still from you must everywhere wander by Whiskey Chow. Shown as part of the Manifestations exhibition

Brighton Digital Festival

Brighton Digital Festival was an annual celebration of digital culture that brought together Brighton’s arts and digital business communities. The festival consisted of a central programme overseen by me and self-organised events by individuals and organisations in the city.

I was the arts adviser overseeing the arts programme in 2014 -15 and was Festival Director from 2016 - 19

As director, I oversaw all areas of the development and delivery of the festival including all curating and programming

I commissioned around 50 new works for the festival including VoiceOver: Brighton with the trans community in the city

I curated a number of exhibitions including Desire Lines with the University of Brighton and Uncommon Natures with the Lumen Prize

I developed the concept for the festival’s flagship digital culture conference the Messy Edge and programmed it over three iterations 2017-19

Image (L) - Film still from eternal return / op.2 übermenschen by ACCI BABA shown as part of the Uncommon Natures exhibition

Other freelance work

Curating -

The Sussex Co-Lab was a creative policy decision-making initiative, based on the collaborative and democratic values of socially engaged art. I worked as a curator on the project to bring together the work of three creative teams selected through an open call process for a final exhibition called Imagined Places

Writing

For the last two years I've been commissioned to write a provocation for the Clore Leadership Inclusive Cultures programme, which is a disabled-led development programme for cultural leaders looking to make systemic change

Frequency Festival - I was asked by Threshold Studios as part of their Digital Democracies project to write some thoughts around the digital realm and its impacts on public spaces

I wrote an introduction and commissioned four artists doing interesting work in this area to write a blog post each

Research

I was a visiting research fellow at The Sussex Digital Humanities Lab which is a Centre of Excellence at the University of Sussex investigating the eco-socio-cultural potentials and impacts of an increasingly digital world. My time there included piloting an artist in residence scheme and programming seminars

Image (R) - Launch of the Imagined Places exhibition featuring XR-H by Judith Ricketts

Testimonials

  • Laurence produced a conference for a number of years - The Messy Edge — that brought together the top thinkers on arts and technology from across the global creative industries. The speakers he selects challenge traditional thinking and common practice in an engaging and insightful manner. It is clear that Laurence carefully curates each element of an event to ensure there is breath and depth and that participants leave inspired.

    Tonya Nelson - Arts Council England

  • Laurence has consistently demonstrated his ability to curate inclusive and thought-provoking spaces that amplify diverse voices and challenge mainstream narratives. As an early career researcher from an African-Caribbean background, his Messy Edge conference in 2017 provided a crucial platform for me to engage with broader inclusive perspectives outside of those typically represented in leading edge digital conferences.

    Judith Ricketts - Artist

  • Laurence is a remarkable freelance curator, creative producer, and researcher. His ability to curate thought-provoking exhibitions and foster inclusive environments is unparalleled. He consistently brings a fresh perspective and a deep understanding of cultural dynamics to every programme. He curates exceptional exhibitions and drives meaningful cultural conversations with careful attention.

    Alli Beddoes - Artistic Director, Lighthouse

  • Laurence is a brilliant curator with a real passion for championing often unheard voices in Art. His curatorial influence has been instrumental in supporting my work as a contemporary artist working with digital, exploring queerness, disability and neurodivergence.

    K Shields - Artist

  • Laurence is a both a joy to work with and one of the most inspired people I have had the pleasure to work with. His curatorial and programmatic skill is superlative, and his understanding of narrative in exhibition making and creative storytelling is peerless, as too his deep thinking and practice around the digital and society - a skill much needed in the world we live in today, and will be living in tomorrow.

    Cara Courage - Culture Consultant

  • Laurence is a brilliant curator and a wonderful collaborator. He has exceptional knowledge around radical inclusion and amplifies the work of artists and thinkers who are often excluded from createch culture and dialogue.

    Donna Close - Cultural Strategist