Towner

Towner is a public contemporary art museum and gallery based in Eastbourne, East Sussex, England. It operates as a cultural institution presenting contemporary art exhibitions, and it is governed by a Board of Trustees chaired by Stephen Welton CBE, with David Dimbleby serving as President of the Board. The institution is best known publicly for its exhibition programme and for its connection to the Turner Prize: Towner was associated with the Turner Prize 2023, on whose jury its incoming CEO and Director Martin Clark previously served. Towner's leadership transition has been publicly reported. Joe Hill departed as CEO and Director in spring 2026, and the Board of Trustees, in a panel led by Chair Stephen Welton CBE alongside President David Dimbleby, appointed Martin Clark to succeed him. Clark is scheduled to take up the role of CEO and Director in January 2027. He joins Towner after nearly a decade as Director of Camden Art Centre in London, where he raised the organisation's national and international profile and curated or programmed exhibitions with artists including Mohammed Sami, Amy Sillman, Christodoulos Panayiotou, Martin Wong, Allison Katz, Lonnie Holley, Jesse Darling, Forrest Bess, Richard Wright and Nicola L., as well as the group exhibition The Botanical Mind. In 2018 he established the Camden Art Centre Emerging Artist Award at Frieze London, and in 2025, the gallery's 60th anniversary year, he led a major fundraising campaign to acquire its building from Camden Council. As a brand, Towner functions as a regional public art museum and visitor attraction rather than a commercial product brand. Its identity rests on its exhibition programme, its Eastbourne location on the English south coast, and its standing within the UK contemporary art sector. Its governance is trustee-based, and its public profile is tied to curatorial leadership, partnerships and prize involvement rather than to consumer goods or retail. The available evidence does not disclose its founding year, its collection details, its funding model or its visitor figures, so those aspects are left unstated here.

Towner is a public contemporary art museum and gallery in Eastbourne, East Sussex, England. The available evidence does not record its founding date or early institutional history; what it documents is the institution's recent leadership and its place in the UK contemporary art world. By the mid-2020s Towner was governed by a Board of Trustees chaired by Stephen Welton CBE, with David Dimbleby serving as President of the Board. Joe Hill held the post of CEO and Director until his departure in spring 2026. Towner's standing in the contemporary art sector is reflected in its link to the Turner Prize: the gallery was connected with Turner Prize 2023, and Martin Clark served on that prize's jury. In 2026 Towner announced the appointment of Martin Clark as its new CEO and Director. The appointment was made by a panel led by Stephen Welton CBE, Chair of Towner's Board of Trustees and Chair of British Business Bank, together with President of the Board David Dimbleby. Clark was to take up the role in January 2027. He came to Towner after nearly a decade as Director of Camden Art Centre in London, a period in which he grew that organisation's profile and visibility both nationally and internationally. At Camden Art Centre he programmed and curated an internationally acclaimed series of exhibitions with artists including Mohammed Sami, Amy Sillman, Christodoulos Panayiotou, Martin Wong, Allison Katz, Lonnie Holley, Jesse Darling, Forrest Bess, Richard Wright and Nicola L., as well as the influential group exhibition The Botanical Mind. In 2018 he established the Camden Art Centre Emerging Artist Award at Frieze London, giving a first London institutional show to emerging artists from around the world, including Julien Creuzet, Marina Xenofontos, Wong Ping, Tenant of Culture, Jack O'Brien and Nat Faulkner. In 2025, the gallery's 60th anniversary year, he led a major fundraising campaign to acquire the building from Camden Council and secure Camden Art Centre's future. Towner's history as a brand is therefore one of institutional continuity and curatorial renewal: a regional public museum on the English south coast whose identity is carried by its exhibition programme, its trustee governance and its connections across the UK art sector, rather than by commercial products or retail operations.

• Towner is associated with the Turner Prize 2023; Martin Clark serves on the prize jury.

• Joe Hill departs as CEO & Director in spring 2026.

• Martin Clark is appointed CEO & Director by a panel led by Chair Stephen Welton CBE and President David Dimbleby.

• Martin Clark is scheduled to take up the role of CEO & Director in January 2027.

A regional public contemporary art museum and gallery in Eastbourne, England, positioned within the UK contemporary art sector through its exhibition programme and prize involvement.

• Contemporary art exhibitions

• Curated public programmes

• 2027.01

  Towner appoints Martin Clark as CEO & Director[1]Towner appoints Martin Clark as new CEO & Directorartdaily.com

  Towner, the contemporary art museum in Eastbourne, UK, has appointed Martin Clark as its new CEO & Director, effective January 2027. Clark succeeds Joe Hill, who departed in spring 2026, and joins from Camden Art Centre where he served as Director for nearly a decade.

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1. 1Towner appoints Martin Clark as new CEO & Directorartdaily.com