David Nettleingham

‘The Good Old Cause (2024) and Leaf Litter (2026) are both different ways of thinking about how the past becomes solidified. I spent 18 months researching and recreating the recipe for Pulhamite – a render plastered over rubble that mimics natural rock. This material was used widely in the building and beautifying of Kent coast resort towns in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. In these pieces, my replica Pulhamite is either hiding, or a platform for, ideas of the past and present.’

Dr David Nettleingham is a sociologist, artist and curator born and bred on the Isle of Thanet.

In both his social research and creative practice, he is interested in the power of narrative, memory and folk mythologies; the material manifestations of changing social values and political imaginaries; the boundaries we draw between the ‘natural’ and ‘industrial’.

He is Senior Lecturer in Sociology at the University of Kent, Co-Director of Hold Creative Spaces in Ramsgate, and founder of Thanet Experimental.

We are delighted to have David as part of our Contemporary Kent Artists exhibition at The Horsebridge Arts Gallery the 7th - 19th of October 2026.

You can find more out more about David and his work on his Website and Instagram.