Hannah Zeilig

Dr Hannah Zeilig is a Reader in Arts and Health at the London College of Fashion, University of the Arts London. She holds a visiting research fellowship at the University of East Anglia and is an editorial board member for the journal Arts and Health. Her work bridges the arts, health, and humanities, with a strong focus on dementia, ageing, and creative interventions in care.

• PhD, King's College London (1998)
• Life member, Royal Society for Public Health
• Wellcome Pioneer in Dementia (2018)

Hannah's research centers on the transformative potential of the arts for people living with dementia and mental illness. She employs transdisciplinary methods, collaborating with artists, clinicians, neuroscientists, and people with lived experience. Her work explores cultural representations of ageing, co-creativity, and the role of fashion, makeup, and sensory design in wellbeing. She has led major projects funded by Wellcome, AHRC, and the Baring Foundation, including the development of multisensory 'Culture Boxes' during the pandemic and a MOOC on dementia and the arts.

Her recent publications reflect a strong engagement with film, literature, and cultural theory in relation to dementia and ageing. The articles show a consistent thematic focus on representation, temporality, identity, and gender in narratives of cognitive decline, particularly in cinematic and literary forms. This indicates a scholarly trajectory deeply embedded in the humanities' critical examination of age and illness.

• Life membership of the Royal Society for Public Health
• Selected by Wellcome as one of the pioneers in dementia (2018)

Hannah has supervised multiple PhD students on topics including co-creative arts in dementia care, multisensory design, and dress and identity in ageing. She has also contributed to policy through involvement with the APPG on ageing and the arts and the Prime Minister’s Champion Group on Dementia. Her research is supported by competitive grants from AHRC, Wellcome, and the Baring Foundation, and she serves as a peer reviewer for major journals and funding bodies internationally.

She is actively involved in public engagement, having curated conferences such as 'Mirror Mirror: Representations and Reflections on Age and Ageing' and co-created a one-woman monologue showcased at the Royal Opera House. Her interdisciplinary collaborations extend to institutions like the Royal Academy of Music and University of East Anglia, and she continues to work directly with care home residents and staff to ground her research in real-world practice.