David Baldry, Interventional Improvisation, SNIP.it, Venice Biennale, 2013, Arsenale, Venice, Italy
From an early age at school I was introduced to the philosophy of Friedrich Fröbel, whose ideas emphasised learning through play, direct experience with nature, and the interconnectedness of all things. I later studied at Ipswich School of Art, Brighton Polytechnic, and the Slade School of Fine Art in London, where I trained in sculpture under Reg Butler. Sculpture gave me a sound understanding of form, space, and materiality, but my practice has always crossed disciplines.
After graduating, I worked in Rome as a photographer before returning to England, to work at Harrow School. Later in Suffolk, I led Foundation Courses at Suffolk College and went on to develop undergraduate and postgraduate programmes in Fine and Applied Art at the University of Suffolk, where I became Head of the School of Arts.
Alongside teaching, I maintained a wide-ranging practice - rarely exhibited, but continually exploring media and form. In recent years, drawing has become central to my work, approached as a discipline of gesture, thought, and image-making.
I have worked with the Arts Council of Great Britain, the Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education, and the Czech Government, and I have served as an external examiner for universities across the UK. I have also commissioned public artworks, curated exhibitions, and initiated international residencies.
Since stepping away from education, I have focused on my second love, architectural restoration and building conservation projects, approaching architecture with the same attention to detail and imagination as I bring to my art practice.
In 2021, together with Caroline Wiseman, I co-curated ‘An Artist’s Cookbook’, Lookout Cookout, with contributions from (amongst many others) Nigel Hall, Maggi Hambling, Aaron Kasmin, Tessa Newcomb, Michael Stubbs, and Alison Wilding.
In 2024, with a new studio, I embarked on a new body of work on paper.
Education
1978 - 80, HDFA Sculpture, Slade School of Fine Art, University College London
1975 - 78, BA (Hons) Fine Art, Sculpture, Brighton School of Art
1973 - 75, Foundation Diploma, Ipswich School of Art
Exhibitions
2025 – SPACE BETWEEN, Ballroom Arts, Aldeburgh, Suffolk
2021 – Lockdown & Light, A digital emersion in various global locations (Curator and Artist)
2020 – Time and Timelessness, Peter Pears Gallery, Aldeburgh, Suffolk
2019 – Alive in the Universe, Palazzo Pesaro Papafava, Venice, Italy (Curator and Artist)
2018 – Landscape & Light II, Letheringham Lodge, Suffolk
2016 – Landscape & Light, Letheringham Lodge, Suffolk
2016 – Four Who Draw, Centre for Graphic Art, Duhok, Iraq
2015 – Experimental Village, Lempa, Cyprus
2014 – Contemporary British Painting, Crypt Gallery, London (Curator)
2014 – East to East – from Aldeburgh Beach to Landguard Fort
2013 – SNIP.it, Venice Biennale, Venice, Italy
2013 – SNIP, Aldeburgh Festival, Snape
2013 – Aldeburgh Festival Exhibition, Strand Gallery, Aldeburgh
2011 – New Work, The Laundrette, Saxmundham
2002 – Light & Space, Bridgewater Arts Centre, Bridgewater
1999 – Christmas Show, Red Dot Gallery, Ipswich
1996 – Vjugovey, Victory Park, Moscow, Russia (Jury Prize for Innovation)
1995 – The Scarecrow, Christchurch Park, Ipswich
1995 – Icon and Effigy, “Forefront”, Ipswich
1983 – Two Person Show, Minories Gallery, Colchester
1983 – Sculptors of Suffolk, Christchurch Mansion, Ipswich
1983 – Some Sculpture Now, Sallis Benney Gallery, Brighton
1982 – All That Glitters, Eton College, Eton
1981 – Sculpture in East Anglia, Robert Cross Gallery, Ipswich
1980 – New Contemporaries, ICA Gallery, London
1978 – New Contemporaries, ICA Gallery, London
Awards
1996 – Moscow World Snow and Ice Sculpture Festival – Prize for Innovation
1983 – Eastern Arts Association Award for Sculpture
1980 – New Contemporaries Prize for Sculpture
1978 – New Contemporaries Prize for Sculpture
Born
1956, Saxmundham, Suffolk, England
Lives and works in Suffolk, England