Joe Sweeney is a conceptual artist dealing with themes of human isolation and communication in the context of the contemporary age. With his work rooted in a personal and wider observed struggle to communicate, Sweeney's visual language often subverts Britain’s passion for nostalgia and a sardonic tone to explore notions of time, memory and permanence through sculpture, print, video and installation. Within this, Sweeney is fascinated in seeking the universal in both the particular and the peculiar, and more specifically the banal, he reimagines the detritus of modern day life as relics and ruin. His work offers an alternative perspective on our fast changing times and seeks to archive a certain truth behind the theatrical veil of human existence. Through quick observation of British idiosyncrasies, the artist encourages a pause for thought on the daily interactions that we don’t always pay attention to.
In 2019, Sweeney launched ‘+44 leave a Message for Europe’ - a public, part digital and part physical project which centred around live web cam stream of a sculpture of a telephone box installed on Dungeness beach, Kent. The public were invited to call the sculpture online, no matter what their opinion, and leave their voice messages for Europe during the 28 day lead up to Britain's original departure date from the EU, 29th March 2019. The project was extended into April and the full archive of voice messages is available to listen to at w
ww.leaveamessage4europe.com. Collating both the footage and the voice archive, Sweeney developed the project into a time-based media work titled
28 Days in March….
Joe Sweeney (b. 1991 London. Lives and works in London, UK) has had solo exhibitions at Cob Gallery, London, UK. He has partcipated in group exhibitions at Hannah Barry Gallery, London, UK; Lamb Gallery, London, UK; Cob Gallery, London, UK and Masa Galeria, Mexico City, Mexico. Solo art fair presentations inlcude LOOP, Barcelona. Projects include +44 Leave a Message for Europe, Dungeness Beach, Kent, UK with a grant awarded by the Arts Coucil England. Sweeney’s time based media work 28 Days in March, debuted at Frieze London 2019.
EDUCATION
2013 BA (Hons) Sculpture, Chelsea College of Art, London, UK
SELECTED SOLO EXHIBTIONS
2023 Times Are Hard For Dreamers, Cob Gallery, London, UK
2021 Still, Life, Cob Gallery (online), London, UK
2019 VACANCY, Cob Gallery, London, UK
2019 +44 Leave a Message for Europe, Supported by Arts Council England, Dungeness, Kent, UK
2017 Loose Change, Cob Gallery, London, UK
2016 Take Away, Cob Gallery, London, UK
SELECTED GROUP EXHIBITIONS
2025 In Tandem, Cob Gallery, London, UK
2024, Sin Centre curated by George Rouy, Hannah Barry Gallery, London, UK
2020 REcover/UNcover, Masa Galeria, Mexico City, Mexico
2017 An Exquisite Mess, curated by India Dickinson, London, UK
2016 FOURTH, curated by India Dickinson, London, UK
2016 Quailty Produce, London UK 2014 PseudoCrem, London, UK
2014 Over and Out, Imperial Works, London, UK
2014 ThunderFlux, HaHa Gallery, Southampton, UK
2012 Resembling Ham in Taste, Mori + Stein Gallery, London, UK
2012 COMM, Bussey Building, London, UK (curator)
2011 And Forget, St. Pancras Church, Crypt Gallery, London, UK
2011 10, New Gallery, Camberwell, London, UK
PUBLIC TALKS
2019 28 Days in March, Screening and artist talk supported by The Standard Hotel, Frieze London, UK
BIBLIOGRAPHY
2021 Still, Life, published by Cob Gallery, London, UK
2017 Loose Change, artist book with contributions from Gilbert & George, published by Cob Gallery, London, UK
