Simon Ward is a Liverpool based creative working with visual art, literature and sound. He holds a BA (First-Class) in Critical Fine Art Practice from University of Brighton, and a Masters with Distinction in Writing from John Moores University.
As part of his practice, Simon delivers community events and workshops to charities, educational institutions and arts organisations, largely on figurative art and creative writing. This includes work for Apple, Writing on the Wall and Sefton CVS.
His interdisciplinary visual art has been exhibited in galleries and events across England, Germany and France, including Berlin Atonal and The Big Draw. His early work mostly dealt with video, sound and performance art; however, post-2016, his practice turned towards portraiture and digital art. In 2023, his painting, ‘Portrait of Dr Sam Naghibi’, was longlisted for the John Moores Painting Prize.
He began writing literature whilst living in Berlin, publishing his first short stories in Offline Samizdat. He was a winner of the 2015 Berlin Writing Prize, and was later published by SAND and 404 Ink. LeCouveNt awarded him a full scholarship for a month-long residency in Auzits, and, after returning to Liverpool, he covered the arts in North West England for Corridor8.
Between 2020 and 2023, Simon released music under the moniker of S. Ward, including two four-track EPs and several music videos. He worked with various lineups over the years, collaborating with five to eight musicians each time, featuring instrumentation from cello, violin and saxophones. In addition to lead vocals, he played auto-harp and classical guitar. Their last EP, The Collegiate, featured in Sun13’s top ten records of 2022.
The themes of Simon’s visual art, literature and music are differentiated; however, they share an affinity for the outsider, a dry humour and a focus on story and detail. He has published social commentaries on addiction and isolation, under the form of fairy tales, and painted life-sized acrylic portraits inspired by the techniques and motifs of German Expressionism.
Simon views art as a means for social change and mindfulness and, through his community work, seeks to engage people who may feel alienated from art, writing or music.