Danielle Brathwaite-Shirley (b. 1995, London, United Kingdom) lives and works between Berlin and London. Working predominantly in animation, sound, performance and video game development, and with a background in DIY print media and activism, Brathwaite-Shirley’s practice focuses on intertwining lived experience with fiction to imaginatively retell stories of people they seek to archive. Brathwaite-Shirley utilises interactive technologies to create participatory spaces that challenge traditional narratives and encourage active engagement, ultimately creating experiences in which the audience itself becomes the main medium.
Their projects often take the form of immersive video games, where players navigate choices that confront their assumptions and biases, fostering deeper conversations about identity, privilege and systemic oppression. Through their innovative use of digital media, Brathwaite-Shirley not only preserves histories but also envisions inclusive futures where the voices of those that have been ignored or erased are central. Their work is both archive and insurgency, a catalyst for dialogue, inviting audiences to reflect on their roles within broader societal structures.
Brathwaite-Shirley’s work has been the subject of solo exhibitions and performances at institutions including: The Delusion, Serpentine Galleries, UK, 2025; The Soul Station, LAS Foundation, Halle am Berghain, Berlin, Germany, 2024; THE REBIRTHING ROOM, Studio Voltaire, London, UK; Get Home Safe, SCAD Museum of Art, Savannah, GA, USA, 2023; BEFORE THERE WERE NONE, Villa Arson, Nice, France, 2023; When Our Worlds Meet, FACT, Liverpool, UK, 2023; Get Home Safe, David Kordansky, Los Angeles, CA, USA, 2022; INVASION PRIDE, Project Arts Centre, Dublin, Ireland, 2022; PIRATING BLACKNESS, Skånes konstförening, Malmö, Sweden, 2022; SHE KEEPS ME DAMN ALIVE, Arebyte Gallery, London, UK, 2022; HAUNTING ALONGSIDE OUR SHADOWS, QUAD, Derby, UK, 2021; Difference Machines: Technology and Identity in Contemporary Art, Albright-Knox Art Gallery, Buffalo, 2021; and RESURRECTION LANDS, Focal Point Gallery, Southend-on-Sea, UK, 2020.
