Jyll Bradley (b.1966, Folkestone, UK. Lives and works in London) works across installation, photography, sculpture, film and performance. Her practice combines the formal vigour of Minimalism with ideas of queerness, identity, light and community. Bradley studied Fine Art at Goldsmiths’ College (1985-88) and the Slade School of Art (1991-93). In her early works she used photographic lightboxes, which could be found in street advertising, as an artistic medium and was the first in the UK to do so.

Recently, Bradley has been exploring her extensive archive of photography and in particular self-portraits from the late 1980’s and early 1990’s which she took in her bedroom but never showed at the time. The re-discovery of these images has given rise to installations of photography and sculpture which she terms ‘memory rooms.’ These highly personal images have gained interest with their expression of queerness explored through doubt, vulnerability and playfulness rather than social activism. The photographs also cast a light on a cohort of queer artists working at the time of the Young British Artists (YBA’s.)

Bradley has presented exhibitions and projects both internationally and nationally for over 35 years. Her most recent shows include her survey Running and Returning, 2025, The Box, Plymouth, UK, and her major installation The Hop, 2023, commissioned by the Hayward Gallery, London. Forthcoming presentations for 2026 include East of the Aldgate Pump, at the Whitechapel Gallery, London.

Jyll Bradley’s monograph Running and Returning was published by Kulturalis in 2025 with essays by leading figures including Andrew Renton, Professor of Curating at Goldsmiths College, London; Nicoletta Lambertucci, Curator of British Art, Tate, UK; Fatoş Üstek, Curator, Frieze Sculpture and Gemma Rolls-Bentley, Curator, Consultant and Writer on Queer art. 

Jyll Bradley’s work is held in major public and private collections including the Government Art Collection, UK; Arts Council Collection, UK; The Sir Elton John and David Furnish Collection; The Box, Plymouth, UK; the Walker Art Gallery, Liverpool, UK; The Faith Museum, UK and the National Library of Australia.

She/Her

@jyl.bradley

Photo by Thierry Bay