Mark Sealy is a British curator and cultural historian with a special interest in the relationship of photography to social change, identity politics and human rights.In 1991 he became the director of Autograph ABP, the Association of Black Photographers, based since 2007 at Rivington Place, a purpose-built international visual arts center in Shoreditch, London. He has curated several major international exhibitions and is also a lecturer.
At Autograph he has initiated the production of over 40 publications, produced exhibitions, residency projects and commissioned artists globally. During his time with the organization, Sealy has jointly initiated and developed a £7.96 million capital building project (Rivington Place) in partnership with the Institute of International Visual Arts. This is the first new build visual arts project to be built in London for over 40 years.
He has guest lectured extensively throughout the UK and abroad including The Royal College of Art, Sothebys Art Institute and Harvard University, and has written for several journals, was photography coordinator for the Africa 95 season and has been a member of the jury for World Press Photography. Sealy’s most recent curated project is, Disposable People: a Hayward Gallery Touring exhibition which opened at Royal Festival Hall in London Oct 08 and Bangladesh 1971 for Autograph ABP at Rivington Place. His book project with Phaidon Press Limited titled “Different” on photography and identity with Professor Stuart Hall has received critical acclaim. Sealy was recently awarded the Hood Medal for services to photography by the Royal Photographic Society and is currently a PhD candidate at Durham University. His research focuses on photography and cultural violence.