Jade French

Dr Jade French is a Future Leaders Fellow at the University of Leeds' School of Fine Art, History of Art and Cultural Studies. Her work focuses on inclusive arts practice, disability studies, and action-research methodologies. She holds a PhD from the University of Leeds and MA/BA qualifications from Brighton and Nottingham Trent Universities.

• Current Fellowship: Inclusive Art for Wicked Problems (2024), collaborating with Pyramid studio and international partners to apply inclusive arts to social care challenges
• Recent Project: Finding the Flex (2024-25), AHRC-funded study on flexible studio models for neurodiverse artists

Her research explores how inclusive arts can generate epistemically just knowledge about disability rights and social care. Key collaborations include work with UK-based Pyramid studio, Sesc São Paulo Museum, and Tokyo's Art Brut World Forum. She also co-led the Irregular Art Schools project (2021-23) developing professional pathways for learning disabled artists.

Awards include the prestigious Future Leaders Fellowship. Her teaching spans art, curating, and museum studies programs at both undergraduate and postgraduate levels.