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The Post-Traumatic Urbanist

The Post Traumatic Urbanist is a body of work that explores architecture’s relationship with trauma. The work links Paul Virilio's assertion that technology and in particular the speed and accelerative nature of the image has its own inherent violence, to Roger Luckhurst's thesis on the intersection of photography and trauma. I use the built environment as a psychological conduit to explore these ideas and to develop my own thesis that architecture has reasserted its place in our collective conscious as a staging ground for the traumatic.

Born and lives in Sydney, Australia. David Manley studied at the College of Fine Arts UNSW, majoring in Photo-media and graduating in 2012 with 1st Class Honours and the Dean's Award for Academic Excellence. He holds a PhD in Fine Arts and in 2015 completed a Masters of Fine Arts by Research with Class 1 Honours. In 2012 he was a winner of the Head On Photographic Portrait Prize. Manley was also a finalist in the 2011, 2013 and 2015 Bowness Photography Prize and the 2014 Josephine Ulrick and Win Schubert Photography Award. Australian and International collections.

Awards 2016
Recipient of the University of New South Wales, Art and Design Post Graduate Award (UPA)

2014
University of New South Wales, Art and Design Travel Grant, 2014 Ulsan International Photography Festival, Ulsan, South Korea

2013
Art Month Sydney and Fortynine Studio Award, ARC @ COFA Emerging Artist Awards

2013
Recipient of the Australian Post Graduate Award (APA)

2012
Winner Head On Portrait Prize, Brian, Surry Hills Boarding House

2012
Juror Award of Merit, Eastern Distributor Exhaust Stack. Grand Prix de la Decouverte, International Fine Art Photography Competition, Paris, France

2012
The Dean's Award for Academic Excellence, The University of New South Wales, College of Fine Arts

2011
Giclee Airport North Gallery Award for Best Performance in Photo-media, UNSW College of Fine Arts Annual Awards

2011
Artist Profile Magazine Award, ARC at COFA Annual Emerging Artist and Designer Award