Kai is an artist, curator, consultant & academic (PhD Slade School of Fine Art 2014). Best known for using art+artful processes to gather diverse+divergent communities across cultural & geopolitical borders to catalyse dialogues for change, her work stands out for its ‘positive atmosphere’ (Guardian 2014), ‘radical interdisciplinarity’ (geographer Alan Latham 2017), ‘eclectic style & cheeky attitude’ (Sydney Morning Herald 2006) that’s ‘positively disruptive’ (National Coordinating Centre for Public Engagement Images Award for Culture Change 2018).
Kai’s interventions/film/performances have been commissioned for 900 shows like Biennale of Sydney & Tokyo Designers’ Week, at ZKM, MOMA (New York), Dom Muzyik (Moscow), Southbank Centre & Royal Geographical Society. Highlights includes San Francisco International Film Festival Golden Gate Award 1999 & Young Artist Award from the Singapore President and collections at Museum of London & Fukuoka Art Museum.
With Prof Ola Uduku, she curated a 4-day festival of 18 events with 11 partners for Black History Month 2020, reaching 18.2m people worldwide. As Visual Director & Communications Director for the £4m Opening & Closing Ceremonies of 8th ASEAN Para Games, Kai worked with Creative Director Philip Tan and disabled & non-disabled teams, cast and crew. The performances at Marina Bay Sands & Singapore Indoor Stadium (6000 live audience) were praised as ‘spectacular’ by the Singapore Prime Minister & ‘game-changing’ by Singapore Association of the Deaf. Kai is described as ‘absolutely instrumental’ (ANTI Festival of Contemporary Art 2015) in leading discourses & activities on running as a creative discourse, seen in the curated RUN! RUN! RUN! Biennale and 80-person Running Cultures network.
The success of her art-psychiatry commission, #MagicCarpet, conducted as the Social, Genetic & Developmental Psychiatry Centre’s first artist-in-residence, has led to the setup of the Neurodiversity In/And Creative Research Network. This comprises 230 neurodivergent innovators and allies from UK, US, Canada & Australia. She’s an active volunteer in arts, health & EDI efforts, including Music in Detention (trustee), UK Adult ADHD Network (creative & cultural consultant). Kai joined Manchester School of Art as Senior Lecturer in 2019. Her Executive Arts Leadership MA/MFA (2022) will gather change makers to re-imagine ‘leadership’. She is Peer Review College member of Arts & Humanities Research Council & UK Research & Innovation.
