b. 1984, living and working in Edinburgh, Scotland.
Lauren McLaughlin is an award winning Scottish artist whose interdisciplinary practice includes collage, photography, neon and installation. McLaughlin's work explores cultural, social and economic inequality, with a particular emphasis on the role of women as mothers. Often drawing upon autobiographical narratives of single motherhood, her practice aims to highlight the hidden and undervalued issues of inequality faced by women and mothers in our society.
Lauren is also the founder of Spilt Milk, a social enterprise which promotes the work of artists who are mothers as a means to tackle gender inequality in the arts. Spilt Milk also provides childcare supported creative opportunities for mothers in Edinburgh which aim to remove the barriers faced by low income mothers who want to access creative education.
EDUCATION
BA (Hons Fine Art ( 2:1 ); Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design, 2010 - 2012
HND Contemporary Art Practice; Edinburgh Telford College, 2008 - 2010
RESIDENCIES
2018/2019 Birth Rites Collection Residency, Department of Midwifery, Kings College London
2016-2018 An Artist Residency in Motherhood
2014 AIR ETC - Edinburgh College Artist in Residence.
AWARDS/GRANTS
2018 Creative Scotland Open Project Funding, The Hope Scott Trust, The Eaton Fund and King’s Cultural Institute; Birth Rites Residency Project.
2018 Birth Rites Collection Award for New Work, Winner 2018.
SELECTED EXHIBITIONS
2019 Womanhouse, Hackney, London.
2019 The M Word One Paved Court Gallery, London. Curated by Desperate Artwives
2018 Edinburgh Art Fair / Society of Scottish Artists Stand, Edinburgh Corn Exchange
2018, oh motHER : Spilt Milk Member Show 18, Custom House Leith, Edinburgh
2018 FiLiA International Conference, Manchester
2018 Birth Rites Screening of shortlisted works, Guy’s Campus, Kings College London.
2017 Birth Rites Screening of shortlisted works, The Whitworth Gallery, Manchester,
2017 See You Soon, Epoch 8 Gallery, Edinburgh.
2017 100 Days, The Tent Gallery Edinburgh College of Art.
2017 G.L.U.E. with Edinburgh Collage Collective, The Tent Gallery Edinburgh.
2016 Darkness Cannot Drive Out Darkness, Only Light Can Do That, Lights of Soho Gallery, London.
2016 Second Self, Arusha Gallery, Edinburgh.
2016 Art 16 Art Fair with Arusha Gallery, Olympia London.
2016 Salonathon Embassy Gallery, Edinburgh.
2015 RSA Open Exhibition Royal Scottish Academy Edinburgh.
2015 Art 15 Art Fair with Arusha Gallery Olympia London.
2015 Women’s Encounters: Matter, Form and Mind in the Art of Women, Palazzo Albrizzi,, Venice Italy.
2014 Site-Seeing - Solo Exhibition Creative Exchange, Edinburgh.
2014 Draw-In with 2-1-4-1 Artist Collective St Margarets House, Edinburgh.
2014 Resurgence The Galley Arts, Carlisle.
2013 Que Sera Sera The Old Ambulance Depot, Edinburgh.
2012 Show One- Central Saint Martin’s Degree Show, London.
PUBLICATIONS / FEATURES
2019 Wordpower : Language as Medium by Library X
2018 King’s College London, Artist in Residence Blog
2016 The Drowning Dog, Interview and artwork feature.
2016 It’s Nice That, ‘Top 5 to see at London’s Art 16’
2016 The Jealous Curator, Collage feature
2015 Trend Design ‘Our picks from Art15’,
2015 La Nuova, Venetian Newspaper. Feature on exhibition and my work.
2013 ‘OH FATHER WHERE ART THOU?’ Essay in Collage Magazine Issue 3.
2012 ‘THE PROBLEM OF THE MATERNAL’ , Essay in Undercurrents Magazine Issue
COLLECTIONS
The Birth Rites Collection, Kings College London.
Private Collections UK, Italy, USA.