Leon Clowes is a transdisciplinary artist interrogating distance of memory and the space of sounds and words.

Using autoethnography, self-compassion and Brechtian techniques, 

Leon's creative practice is informed by lived trauma.

Portraiture by Ilmė Vyšniauskaitė (www.ilmevysnia.com)

SECRETS+SHAMES=SELFS

Audio trailer for upcoming trauma trilogy.

Recent and Upcoming Artistic Commissions

The Last Five Days of Sandra – work-in-progress commissioned by QUEEF Experimental (Birmingham, UK) (Nov 2021); subsidised short-term residency place offered at Björkö Konstnod (Sweden) (2021/22)

Nan Kids – commissioned by an international arts festival (announced in June, UK) (Oct 2021); Sound and Music New Voices 2020

The Avant Garden Drop-In Centre @ Round Chapel, Hackney – audio collage of 20 artists (UK, Mar 2021)

The Avant Garden on Ice – audio collage of 14 artists, Reel Rebels Radio (UK, Jan 2021); Kaamos/Datscha Radio (Finland/Germany, Feb 2021)

Nine Sound Works Made Over Nine Days In November – Reel Rebels Radio (Nov 2020); Orbit Instagram Artist-in-Residence (Jan 2021)

Days of Future Past – Reel Rebels Radio (Apr 2020); Transmission Gallery and Queer Contemporaries exhibitions (Sep 2020); CCA Glasgow’s Radiophrenia Festival (Nov 2020); #WIP exhibition by Queer Art Projects (Oct 2020 – Jan 2021); Squish.Rotterdam (2021)

awards, open calls & commissions ↓↓

↑↑ awards, open calls, commissions

Publications

Clowes, L. (2019) Got any gay music? London’s “anti-gay” queer clubs 1995-2000. Stahl, G. and Bottà, G. (eds.) Nocturnes: popular music and the night. Lincoln: Palgrave Macmillan.
Clowes, L. (2018) Soft Cell: redefining the synth-pop prologue. In: Beaven, Z., O’Dair, M. and Osbourne, R. (eds.) Mute records: artists, business, history. New York: Bloomsbury Academic.
Clowes, L. (2017) How can you sing a song if you have no voice? Disabled musicians, activism, technology and the authenticity of creativity. Riffsjournal.org [Online].