2024: A Year in Review

2024 was been a busy and transformative year for DASH!

With a lot of our time over the last twelve months devoted to accessible recruitment and organisational development, much of our work went on behind the scenes.

Here are some of our highlights from 2024:

• We recruited four new members to the team - Curator Jade Foster, Assistant Curator Lucy Mounfield, New Art West Midlands Director Colette Griffin and Executive Director Peter Bonnell. Rachel Fleming-Mulford also supported the team with our fundraising and international development ambitions.
• We bid fond farewells to our Operations Director Paula Dower following 20 years with DASH, and to Trustees Roo Dhissou and Dave Prytherch, wishing them all the best and thanking them for their dedication.
• We delivered events with partners at IKON Gallery (On The Press), Newlyn and the Exchange (Mad Talks), John Hansard Gallery (In Conversation with exhibiting artists Sonia Boue and Ashokkumar Mistry) to name a few.
• We collaborated with the Autistic Advocate Kieran Rose to train 64 artists and staff via his programme The Inside of Autism, including members of our Future Curators Network.
• We galvanized the Future Curators Programme, and recruited the first Curator to this round of the programme. Further call-outs for curator posts are planned for 2025.
• DASH staff visited the Government Art Collection at 10 Downing Street, and the King's Garden Party at Buckingham Palace.
• We grew our social media following, ending the year with 3940 followers on Instagram.
• We established the DASH library, adding over 100 titles to the catalogue covering aspects of disability, neurodiversoty and activism, as recommeded by our colleagues and collaborators.