Lewis Sykes is a visual musician, creative technologist, digital art and media producer/curator and researcher/educator based in Manchester, UK.

A veteran bass player of the underground dub-dance scene of the 90s he performed and recorded with Emperor Sly, Original Hifi and Radical Dance Faction and was partner in Zip Dog Records – best known for its series of Club Meets Dub and World Fusion compilation albums.

Honing an interest in mixed media through an MA Hypermedia Studies at the University of Westminster (1999-2000) he continued to fuse music, visuals and technology through a series of creative collaborations – most notably as musician with the progressive audiovisual collective The Sancho Plan (2005-2008) performing live audiovisual sets and exhibiting interactive sonic installations at numerous UK and European festivals – highlights including a permanent exhibit in the Museum of the Future, Ars Electronica, Linz and live showcases at its festival Gala Ceremony (2006 & 2007).

Later, as one-third of Monomatic (from 2008) – a collaboration, experimental playground and halfway house alongside the work of composer, software architect and sound designer Nick Rothwell a.k.a Cassiel and visual artist, filmmaker and technologist Ben Lycett – he explored sound and interaction through physical works and audiovisual performances inspired by sonic traditions. PEAL: A Virtual Campanile – an interactive sound installation which models the layout and operation of a traditional English church bell tower was commissioned by Sound and Music for their Expo 09, Leeds festival – relocating the distinctive ringing sounds and characteristics of five churches spread across the Leeds Metropolitan District to the Arena of the Leeds City Museum, subsequently Kinetica Art Fair ’10 and most recently at LUMEN, Crewe’s Night of Lights (2018).

Lewis was Director of Cybersonica, the festival of music, sound, art and technology – launched at the Institute of Contemporary Art (ICA), London, UK in Jun 2002 and delivering an increasingly diverse annual programme of festival iterations, projects and one-off-events at multiple venues and with numerous collaborators around the UK until early 2011. He was also Co-ordinator of the ‘think tank on networked culture’ Cybersalon (2002-2007) – founding Artists-in-Residence at the Science Museum’s Dana Centre.

Lewis undertook a Ph.D. Practice as Research project, The Augmented Tonoscope – exploring the aesthetics of sound and vibration – at MIRIAD, Manchester Metropolitan University, UK (2010-15). The body of creative work realised through this study and his subsequent artistic collaboration with Ben Lycett looked for connections between music and moving image which are more elementary, direct and ‘harmonious’ and which attempt to engage our senses in a way which is not discretely seen and heard, but is instead ‘co-sensed’ or ‘seenheard’. His current research interests focus on digital arts practice, audiovisual composition theory and perception and the senses. While completing his Ph.D. he was also an Associate Lecturer for the BA Creative Multimedia, School of Art, Manchester Metropolitan University (2012-15).

His most recent team collaboration was as a member and Art Director for Cornbrook Creative – organisers of the Arts Council England funded A Grand Exposition 4-day event and developers of Sonic Pixels – an innovative, wirelessly controlled distributed speaker system – part of Manchester Science Festival 2017/18.

Committed to improving access and equality of opportunity in the arts Lewis is also an Associate Musician for Drake Music – the “leaders in music, disability and technology” national charity and is active in their DMLab community. He’s currently working with Disabled musician Steve Varden as a general music tech and creative technologist for his Portable Index Finger or Two’ (PIFo2) project – to try and address some of the accessibility issues Steve faces using commercial music making equipment that simply isn’t designed for his needs.

Lewis is currently based at GRIT Studios – a creative workspace and community in central Stockport.