Nice To Meet You: Luke King

Co-presented by Adelaide Contemporary Experimental and Guildhouse.

Join us in celebrating National Week of Deaf People 2023, with this special Nice To Meet You with Deaf Naarm-based artist, Luke D King.

Luke D King is a native Deaf artist based in the Wurundjeri people's traditional land of Kulin nation, Naarm (Melbourne). His multidisciplinary artistic practices primarily focuses on paper-based works, human portraiture, dance, performance and collaboration.

As a prominent figure in his local Deaf community, Luke actively advocates for and represents the interests of Deaf artists. He serves as a progressive force, working towards greater inclusion and recognition of Deaf artists within the arts community. King has been involved as a consultant for various organisations including Arts House, Chunky Move, Creative Victoria and the Merri-Bek council where he offers his expertise and guidance in matters related to art, accessibility and the Deaf community. Beyond his artistic pursuits and consultancy work, Luke is also engaged as a teacher, mentor, speaker and project officer. These roles allow him to share his knowledge, skills, and experiences with others and advocating for the Deaf community's needs and aspirations.

Luke participated in Next Wave’s Kickstart program in 2017, resulting in an exhibition at Bus Projects as part of Next Wave Festival in 2018. He has exhibited at numerous galleries, including Tinning Street, For Heart Co., and Counihan Gallery. Luke is also part of DARE Deaf Art Residency Exhibition, a group of deaf artists focused on responding to current thematic topics. He is a member of the Naarm Deaf street art band named .MPG, along with Gonketa and Movas, and regularly hosts art tours in public and private art galleries and museums, such as the National Gallery of Victoria, the Ian Potter Centre, the Art Gallery of NSW, Melbourne Museum and Heide Museum of Modern Art.

Feature Image: Luke King. Photography by Emily Short. Courtesy the artist.

Nice To Meet You is a series of public talks which invites visiting curators to share their knowledge and experiences with Adelaide audiences and arts communities. Speakers are invited to share their career journeys and insights into their organisation and upcoming projects with local audiences. The project is part of ACE and Guildhouse’s shared motivation to create points of connection, exchange and learning within the visual arts between South Australia, Australia and other parts of the world.

This initiative has been supported by the Government of South Australia through Arts South Australia.