Gavin Wade (1971, GB)
Gavin Wade graduated as a painter from London’s Central Saint Martins in 1994. He curated his first exhibition in 1996 and has operated as an artist-curator ever since.
In 2008 he founded Eastside Projects, an experimental art pluriverse in his home-town of Birmingham, with five other artists, architects and designers. He is known for his pragmatic utopianism, collaborative practice and curatorial artworks in the form of galleries, exhibition making, display units, publishing, performing, music and renga poetry. Wade is an artist-curator, artist-curator of Eastside Projects, and Senior Research Fellow at Birmingham City University. In 2010, he received the major Paul Hamlyn Foundation Breakthrough Fund Award for exceptional cultural entrepreneurs.
‘Solo’ projects include L is for Landscape, Division of Labour, London (2026); Mobile Wall System with 164 permanent pole positions on a square grid (After Adolf Krischanitz & Frederick Kiesler & John Madin), Midland Metropolitan Hospital, Sandwell, (2025); Into Nature Biennial, (with Paul Conneally) Drenthe, Netherlands (2023); P is for Portrait, Arthouse, Worcester (2019); A is for Analogue (with Rachel Lowe), Narrative Projects, London (2017); ‘Z is for Zoo’, at Frans Hals Museum, Haarlem, Netherlands (2016).
His curated and co-curated exhibitions include ‘melissandre varin: dirty nails (les ongles noir) (2024); ‘Sahjan Kooner: dankEconogy_01ALIENVillage’ (2023); Sonia Boyce: In the Castle of My Skin (2020); This is the Gallery and the Gallery is Many Things X (2018); Display Show (2015–16); and Painting Show (2011–2012) at Eastside Projects. Earlier exhibitions include Strategic Questions Venice, 52nd Venice Biennale (2007); Public Structures, Guangzhou Triennial, China (2005); ArtSheffield05: Spectator T (2005). Wade’s diverse sites for making and curating art include a Naval Frigate, Portsmouth Cathedral, Greenham Common, Clumber Park, The Piccadilly Line: London Underground, Dudley Zoo and the new Smithfield Market in the centre of Birmingham (2020–2028).
His books include Is this the way the universe works? (555 Verses / 77 Verses) (With Paul Conneally) (2023); Upcycle This Book (2017); Has Man A Function In Universe (2008); and Curating In The 21st Century, (2000). Ongoing projects also include A Z Display Units (After Kiesler & Krischanitz) (2015–) and Strategic Questions publishing project (2002–).