Laura Freeman: Inside the Career of The Times Art Critic

From Cambridge art history to national newspaper criticism, Laura Freeman has built her career around art, books, architecture and sharp cultural writing.

News TrapSeptember 11, 2026

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Introduction

Laura Freeman is a British art critic, journalist and author. She is best known as Chief Art Critic of The Times and as the writer of The Reading Cure and Ways of Life: Jim Ede and the Kettle’s Yard Artists. As of September 2026, she remains active in her role at The Times.

Her work has several sides. Art comes first. But books, architecture, dance and cultural history have all been part of her career too.

Quick Facts About Laura Freeman

Fact	Detail
Full professional name	Laura Freeman
Profession	Art critic, journalist and author
Current role	Chief Art Critic of The Times
Education	History of Art, Magdalene College, Cambridge
Graduation	2010
Academic result	Double first
First book	The Reading Cure: How Books Restored My Appetite
Later book	Ways of Life: Jim Ede and the Kettle’s Yard Artists
Main writing subjects	Art, books, architecture and culture
Former specialist role	Dance critic
Official Instagram	@laura_freeman_times_art

Freeman’s official website confirms her present role, Cambridge education, books and earlier work across major British publications.

Who Is Laura Freeman?

Laura Freeman is a writer whose name is closely tied to British arts journalism.

She currently writes as Chief Art Critic of The Times. Her job puts her in front of exhibitions, galleries, artists and cultural stories, which she reviews and discusses for a national readership.

That role came after years of writing.

Her published work has appeared in outlets including The Spectator, Sunday Times, Daily Telegraph, Apollo, Literary Review, World of Interiors, Country Life and the TLS. She has also worked as a dance critic for The Spectator and Evening Standard.

So, basically, her career isn’t limited to paintings hanging on gallery walls. Her writing has moved across several parts of British cultural life.

Laura Freeman’s Education at Cambridge

Freeman studied History of Art at Magdalene College, Cambridge.

She graduated in 2010 with a double first, according to her official professional profile.

That academic background fits naturally with the work she does now. Her writing often deals with artists, collections, architecture, exhibitions and the history surrounding them.

Her connection with arts writing started early.

While studying at Cambridge, Freeman was involved with the university newspaper Varsity, including work in its arts section. That gave her experience writing about culture before her later national press career.

The foundation was already there.

How Laura Freeman Built Her Writing Career

Freeman moved into professional journalism after Cambridge and developed a broad arts-writing portfolio.

She wrote about books. Then art. Architecture came into the mix as well. Dance criticism became another clear part of her work.

Her writing reached several major publications.

One early career marker came in 2014, when she was shortlisted for Features Writer of the Year at the British Press Awards, according to the Sunday Times Young Writer of the Year Award profile.

Her focus later became more strongly linked with visual art.

That work eventually led to her present position as Chief Art Critic of The Times. Cambridge’s Department of History of Art has also described her by that title in its own public event material.

Laura Freeman and The Times

Freeman’s current role is one of the clearest answers for readers searching her name.

She is Chief Art Critic of The Times.

Her official site states it directly, while Penguin’s author information gives the same position.

The job involves writing about exhibitions, artists and developments across the art world.

It is active work. Not an old title.

Her role makes her part of the newspaper’s cultural criticism team, giving readers assessments of both established artists and newer work.

The Reading Cure

Freeman’s first book was The Reading Cure: How Books Restored My Appetite.

It was published in 2018.

The book grew from a deeply personal subject. Freeman has publicly discussed being diagnosed with anorexia at 14 and how reading remained important to her during her recovery. The book links literature, food, appetite and recovery through her own experience.

Books became part of the story.

Freeman writes about how descriptions of food and life in literature helped change the way she thought about eating and appetite.

The book gained serious attention.

It was shortlisted for the 2018 Sunday Times Young Writer of the Year Award. Her official site also records shortlists in the First Book and Food Book categories at the Guild of Food Writers Awards.

Ways of Life and Kettle’s Yard

Freeman later turned her attention to a very different subject.

Her book Ways of Life: Jim Ede and the Kettle’s Yard Artists focuses on Jim Ede and the artists connected with Kettle’s Yard in Cambridge.

The ebook edition was published in 2023, while Penguin lists the current Vintage paperback edition as published in September 2025.

The book looks at Ede’s life and his links with major twentieth-century artists.

Names connected with the story include Ben Nicholson, Winifred Nicholson, Henry Moore, Barbara Hepworth, Alfred Wallis and Henri Gaudier-Brzeska.

Kettle’s Yard sits at the heart of the book.

Ede created a home where art and everyday living sat side by side. Freeman’s book examines both the man and the circle of artists around him.

Recognition for Ways of Life

Ways of Life earned recognition in art-history publishing.

In 2024, the book was shortlisted for the Berger Prize, an award run by the Walpole Society for writing and scholarship concerning British art and architecture.

Freeman was one of six shortlisted authors.

That shortlist placed her book alongside specialist works covering architecture, ceramics, British art and colonial history.

It was a strong professional marker.

The award recognition also showed that her work had moved beyond newspaper criticism into serious long-form art writing.

Freeman’s Work Beyond Books

Books form only part of her career.

Freeman has written on art, architecture and literature for several publications. She previously reviewed dance too.

She has also appeared on BBC programmes including Front Row, Saturday Review, Start the Week and the Today programme, according to her official site.

So her work crosses formats.

Newspaper criticism remains central. Books give her more room for longer historical stories. Broadcasting adds another route for discussing culture with a wider audience.

Why Laura Freeman Is Known

The simple answer is this: Laura Freeman is known for making art criticism and cultural history the centre of her professional writing.

Her Cambridge training gave her an academic base. Journalism gave her speed and range. Her books let her take much longer looks at subjects that matter to her.

That mix explains her career well.

She can write a newspaper review. She can talk about architecture. She can spend a full book examining Jim Ede and Kettle’s Yard.

Different formats. Same main field.

Laura Freeman’s Current Work

As of September 2026, Freeman continues to be identified as Chief Art Critic of The Times. Her official website still gives that title.

Penguin also identifies her as the newspaper’s chief art critic in its current author material.

That makes her present professional status clear.

Her work still sits around visual art, exhibitions, cultural institutions and the people behind them.

Awards and Career Recognition

Freeman has received several verified forms of professional recognition during her writing career.

She was shortlisted for Features Writer of the Year at the 2014 British Press Awards. The Reading Cure reached the 2018 Sunday Times Young Writer of the Year Award shortlist, while Ways of Life reached the 2024 Berger Prize shortlist.

Those honours cover different parts of her work.

One came through journalism. Another recognised her first book. The Berger Prize placed her later art-history writing among specialist works in the field.

Final Thought

Laura Freeman has built a clear career around looking carefully at art and then writing clearly about what she sees.

Her route started with History of Art at Cambridge. Journalism followed. Books became another part of the picture.

Right now, her main public role remains Chief Art Critic of The Times.

For readers searching her name, that’s the key point. Freeman is an art critic and author whose work connects newspaper criticism, books, architecture and British cultural history.