Biography
British artist Colin David Clarke is the owner of strayltd, best known for creating contemporary collage artworks that narrate stories with depth and context. Working with free association techniques inherent in a collage art practice, he intuitively follows a trail of unconscious thought triggered by the relationship between different collage pieces. Referencing source material such as music memorabilia, museum websites, cultural magazines, or even other artists, he adds context to the narratives found in each artwork. Examples include a depiction of Adam and Eve made from pieces of i-D.vice.com, a person dreaming made from pieces of Surrealist artworks, and portraits of the Queen made from pieces of UK punk memorabilia.
Following his flow of unconscious thought, he often leaves his collages roughly cut. More recent artworks take this aesthetic a step further, and possess elements that have been roughly stretched, folded and creased in three dimensional space on computer. In contrast to his overall unrefined visual approach, each artwork possesses a richly defined narrative obtained from the creative use of free association and contextual source material.
As he has noted, “Analysing my art involves a process similar to that of a waking person dissecting their dreams; each artwork evokes the sensation of being newly discovered, and as if it was just waiting to be found within the source material”
A strong advocate of digital art, Clarke employs a digitally native language, creating captivating short-form looping videos that last only seconds but which can be watched for many minutes. His pieces address a technologically literate audience at a moment when debates surrounding artificial and human creativity have become increasingly polarised. In doing so, his work asserts that digital art remains fundamentally human, and that meaning, emotional resonance, and “soul” emerge through the intentions and sensibilities of the artist.
Born in London, England, Clarke studied at Chelsea School of Art and University of the Creative Arts, gaining an honours degree. He now lives and works in London and Hamburg as a freelance artist and art director. Most notably he has received commissions from Grammy Award winning musicians The Mars Volta, creating seven dream themed collage artworks made from pieces of The Mars Volta record covers for the legacy box set La Realidad De Los Sueños (2021); the 12 inch record Eunuch Provocateur (2021); and A Plague Upon Your Hissing Children (2021). He has also made a series of nine biographically themed collage artworks from pieces of Omar Rodríguez-López record covers for the legacy quadruple box set Amor De Frances (2023).
Notable artworks include a sold out debut crypto art collection, ‘77 Portraits of The Queen (2022), made from pieces of UK punk memorabilia and released in protest at the Platinum Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II. Later reviving the same source material, Come The Revolution We Will All Be Kings For The Day (2023) was created for the coronation of King Charles III. His short-form video Hello Herbert (2024), made from pieces of artworks by renowned computer art pioneer Herbert W. Franke, has been published by Stiftung Herbert W. Franke, and presented at Deutsches Museum, Munich, during Festival Of The Future (2026). Most significantly, his 3D collage Self-Portrait In A Convex Manner (2024) is represented in the permanent collection of Kunsthistorisches Museum Wien, Austria.
Clarke’s practice gives him the versatility to exhibit in a diverse range of exhibition spaces, and he has been shown in small group shows around the world alongside his contemporaries. Notable artworks have been displayed next to crypto art pioneers at the Birth of New Tools, Tong Gallery, Beijing, China (2022); record cover artists at InBetween, Reeperbahn Festival, Hamburg, Germany (2022); immersive artists as part of Contact Attempt in Planetariums across Germany (2024/25); international contemporary digital artists at Select Start, Beeple’s Studios, South Carolina, USA (2025); and British contemporary fine artists at Odyssey, Hastings Contemporary, Hastings, UK (2026).
Resumé
Colin David Clarke | @strayltd
Profession | Artist and Art Director
Born | London, England
Education
Art Foundation
Chelsea School of Art
Exhibition at Chelsea School of Art
Alumni of University of Arts London
BA (Hons) Graphic Design
University of the Creative Arts
Exhibition at Royal Society of Arts
Group Exhibitions
2026 Festival Of The Future, Stiftung Herbert W. Franke, Deutsches Museum, Munich, DE
2026 Chance Encounters: Art Through Accident and Invitation, Fringe Arts Bath, Bath, UK
2026 Odyssey, Hastings Contemporary, Hastings, UK
2025 Select Start, Beeple’s Studios, South Carolina, USA
2025 Contact Attempt, Stiftung Herbert W. Franke, Planetarium Jena, Jena, DE
2025 Contact Attempt, Stiftung Herbert W. Franke, Planetarium Bochum, Bochum, DE
2024 Contact Attempt, Stiftung Herbert W. Franke, Planetarium Hamburg, Hamburg, DE
2024 Intl All Media, Minot University, Walter Piehl Gallery, Northwest Arts Centre, USA
2024 Continuum, Accelerate Art, High Tech Campus, Eindhoven, NL
2023 NFT.NYC, Javits Center, Hudson Yards, New York, USA
2022 InBetween, Reeperbahn Festival, Hamburg, DE
2022 Birth Of New Tools, Tong Gallery, Beijing, CN
Notable Collections
2024 Self Portrait In A Convex Manner, Kunsthistorisches Museum Wien, Austria, Permanent
2022 ‘77 Portraits Of The Queen, XCOPY, Private
2021 Adam & Eve & Adam & Eve & Adam & Eve, TokenAngels, Private
2021 The Sun Goddess Emerges From DNS 104.16.240.242, Jane Rogers, Private
Appearances & Publications
2025 Contact Attempt, Stiftung Herbert W. Franke, FullDome Publication
2024 Art Aperitivo, Kunsthistorisches Museum Wien, Podcast Interview
2022 All The Rage, NFT Magazine, Collectible NFT Cover
2021 La Realidad De Los Sueños - Behind The Scenes, Clouds Hill, Video Interview
2021 La Realidad De Los Sueños, The Mars Volta Podcast, Podcast Interview
Commissions
2026 Astropoeticon, Stiftung Herbert W. Franke, Generative AI Short-Form and FullDome Film
2025 Legacy Of A Visionary, Stiftung Herbert W. Franke, 30 second TVC
2025 No Pasarán, Breaking Fuel, Anti-Surveillance Masks
2023 Amor De Frances, Omar Rodríguez-López, Quadruple Box Set
2021 La Realidad De Los Sueños, The Mars Volta, Box Set
2021 A Plague Upon Your Hissing Children, The Mars Volta, 12” Single
2021 Eunuch Provocateur, The Mars Volta, 12” Single
2021 Landscape Tantrums, The Mars Volta, Album
2021 Inertiatic ESP, The Mars Volta, Single
2020 The Clouds Hill Tapes, Omar Rodríguez-López, Triple Album Box Set
2020 Winter’s Gone, Omar Rodríguez-López, Single
Testimonials
“Your artwork will make an important contemporary contribution to our collection”
Sabine Haag, Director General, Kunsthistorisches Museum Wien
“Stumbled across Queenies by strayltd and scrambled to unlock my ledger. Banger.”
XCOPY, Cryptoart Pioneer
“La Realidad De Los Sueños, resembles some kind of trippy, seemingly bottomless treasure chest”
Rolling Stone, April 2021
“His work is cool”
Omar Rodríguez-López, Musician, The Mars Volta