Yorkshire Contemporary is delighted to share that Claye Bowler has been selected as the commissioned artist for our summer Art and Play activities in Cross Flatts Park!
Claye will design and deliver weekly creative play sessions, drawing on his sculptural practice and experience in how museums collect and archive objects. Through nature inspired, playful activities, the project will engage audiences across South Leeds and create new meaningful moments this summer.
The commission forms part of Yorkshire Contemporary’s Inside Out programme, focused on supporting creative play for children and families in Beeston and Beeston Hill. It forms part of the organisation’s artistic strategy of supporting continuous play, curiosity and creativity for people from all walks and stages of life. Across the first two years of Inside Out, the programme has seen 5,689 visits bringing art to communities in accessible, engaging and creative ways.
As well as weekly sessions in Cross Flatts Park, Claye’s commission will also take place at selected family festivals across Leeds this summer.
Congratulations to Claye!
Image Credit: left to right. 1. Claye Bowler, image courtesy of the Artist. 2. Claye Bowler, Yorkshire Sculpture Park, Photography by Owen Richards
About the Artist
Claye Bowler is an artist based in Yorkshire. Based on his experience working as a museum registrar, Bowler’s work often incorporates, yet questions, the ethics, administration and aesthetics of museum collecting in his work.
Bowler uses sculptural practices to highlight stories that are not historically collected through institutional means, often working with narratives of queerness and disability. Bowler has a strong connection to sound and music, increasingly integrating these elements into his work, using field recordings and traditional British folk song.
Recent solo exhibitions include: Dig Me a Grave, Yorkshire Sculpture Park (2025), Top, Henry Moore Institute, Leeds (2022). He has also performed at Tate (2023) and with Yorkshire Sculpture International (2021). He was a recipient of ACE DYCP Grant (2023) and Jerwood New Work Fund (2023) and ACE Project Grant (2024). His work is held in public collections: Arts Council Collection, Wellcome Collection, Otherness Archive, and Leeds Art Gallery.
Bowler has established platforms for the showcasing and support of other queer and trans artists, founding and directing Yonder Gallery (2019-22) and Yorkshire Trans Choir (2018-22).