John Chilver

John Chilver is a Senior Lecturer in Fine Art at Goldsmiths, University of London, where he teaches within the Department of Art. As an artist and writer, he works primarily with painting, film and text, exploring painting as a site of inquiry that renders complexity through additive and subtractive processes.

His research interests span a wide range of topics in contemporary art theory and practice:

• Contemporary painting and its theoretical frameworks
• Theorizations of agency, the new, and subject-formation
• The political and affective economies of painting
• Conceptual and postconceptual art practices
• Colour theory and its limitations
• Art theory, criticism, and their historical development
• Display and exhibition-making practices
• Oscillations between anthropological and normative understandings of art
• Theorizations of space and place in artistic contexts

Chilver's scholarly output demonstrates a consistent engagement with contemporary painting theory, with recent work focusing on 'minor painting' as a critical framework. His publications span art theory, criticism, and historical analysis, with particular attention to the intersections of painting with conceptual practices, spatial theory, and political discourse. His writing appears in prominent journals including the Journal of Contemporary Painting, Art Papers, Afterall, and Frieze.

Notable scholarly contributions include:

• 2022: 'Minor Matters of Major Importance: On the Vicissitudes of Minor Painting' (Journal of Contemporary Painting)
• 2018: 'The discursive array: Towards a politics of painting as time–space production' (Journal of Contemporary Painting)
• 2016: Review of Bridget Riley's work (Journal of Contemporary Painting)
• 2014: 'Number intersecting with art: three studies' (Distinktion: Journal of Social Theory)

Chilver has also edited the 2022 special issue of the Journal of Contemporary Painting on 'Minor Painting' and has contributed to numerous exhibition catalogs and anthologies. His academic work is deeply intertwined with his practice as an exhibiting artist, creating a rich dialogue between theoretical inquiry and artistic production.