Martin Clark Appointed CEO & Director of Towner Eastbourne

Towner Eastbourne has appointed Martin Clark as its new CEO & Director. He will take up the position in January 2027, following the departure of Joe Hill in spring 2026.

Clark joins Towner after nearly a decade as Director of Camden Art Centre in London, where he expanded the organisation’s national and international profile. He curated exhibitions featuring artists including Mohammed Sami, Amy Sillman, Christodoulos Panayiotou, Martin Wong, Allison Katz, Lonnie Holley, Jesse Darling, Forrest Bess, Richard Wright and Nicola L., alongside the group exhibition The Botanical Mind.

In 2018, Clark established the Camden Art Centre Emerging Artist Award at Frieze London, offering emerging artists the opportunity to present their first institutional exhibition in London. Previous recipients include Julien Creuzet, Marina Xenofontos, Wong Ping, Tenant of Culture, Jack O’Brien and Nat Faulkner.

During Camden Art Centre’s 60th anniversary year in 2025, Clark led a fundraising campaign to acquire the organisation’s building from Camden Council and secure its long-term future.

Clark previously worked with Towner as a member of the Turner Prize 2023 jury. His appointment comes as the organisation prepares to develop Towner Seven Sisters at Black Robin Farm, a new cultural destination dedicated to art, nature and heritage near Eastbourne in the South Downs National Park.

Developed in partnership with Eastbourne Borough Council and supported by funding from the UK Government and Arts Council England, the new site will include a gallery building and refurbished historic farm buildings accommodating heritage, learning and community engagement spaces. Development is expected to begin in early 2027.

Towner is also expanding its creative programme in Newhaven, which supports artists, communities and creative industries while contributing to the wider cultural sector across Sussex.

Before joining Camden Art Centre, Clark served as Director of Bergen Kunsthall in Norway from 2013 to 2017. From 2007 to 2013, he was Artistic Director of Tate St Ives, becoming the youngest person to hold a Tate directorship at the time. There, he contributed to the development, fundraising and artistic masterplan for the £9 million Tate St Ives Phase Two Capital Project.

Clark’s previous roles also include Artistic Director of Art Sheffield 2016 and Curator of Exhibitions at Arnolfini in Bristol. He holds an MA in Curating and Commissioning Contemporary Art from the Royal College of Art and a BA in Fine Art from Sheffield Hallam University.

Image: Martin Clark. Courtesy of Towner Eastbourne.