Member Profile
Name:
Dr Chloe Ward
Institution:
Queen Mary, University of London
Academic status:
University/college academic
Main discipline:
Art History
Additional disciplines:
Cultural Studies
History
Literary Studies
History
Literary Studies
Other societies:
Fellow of the Royal Historical Society, Fellow of the Higher Education Academy
Research interests:
Dr Chloe Ward is the Senior Lecturer in the History of British Art at Queen Mary, University of London. She researches Victorian political art, the history of exhibitions of British art abroad, and the history of nineteenth century drawing and illustration. Her new book, Art and Action: Painting for Social Change in Victorian England (Oxford University Press, 2026), traces the origins of the idea that art should not only comment on society, but also act as a political tool by which to shape it. Her first book, The Drawings of G. F. Watts (Philip Wilson, 2015) was the first comprehensive analysis of drawings by the Victorian painter, George Frederic Watts. Exhibitions she has curated include “Art and Action: Making Change in Victorian Britain” at Watts Gallery (2020-1) and “A Life of Drawing” at Leighton House (2022-3).