Harry Mayston is an emerging artist-curator based in Nottingham, specialising in accessible, grassroots, and socially engaged creative practices.

Holding an MA in Contemporary Art Theory from the University of Edinburgh and a BA in Fine Art from Loughborough University, Mayson’s creative practice is underpinned by research-informed decision-making. He draws upon conventional contemporary curation, phenomenological theory, and practical studio art techniques to develop and install conceptually complex exhibitions and artworks.

Specialising in ecological theory, Mayston employs both experimental exhibition design and contemporary mixed-media art installations to challenge dominant social narratives while questioning entrenched capitalist ideologies. Curating exhibitions such as Mycorrhizal: Reciprocity in the Anthropocene (2025), Mayston embeds concepts of deep time, happenings, and colonialism into spatial exhibition design. Through an artist-curatorial, research-led approach, Mayston frames curation within a framework of frictional reciprocity, where the thoughtful selection of artworks is conceived as a constructive act of meaning-making.

Currently, Harry also works as a volunteer and exhibitions coordinator at Surface Gallery in central Nottingham, a non-profit social enterprise dedicated to providing arts opportunities to early-career and emerging creatives across the East Midlands.