MASTERCLASSES: Towards dismantling the ‘master’ story of leadership

We are delighted to host the formidable Dr Jack Ky Tan on 25/2/2025. Jack is a neurodivergent and queer UK based interdisciplinary artist (b. Singapore). No need to book, simply join on Teams here. Jack needs no introduction, but in Jack’s own words:

‘I am a UK based interdisciplinary artist (b.Singapore). Working across performance, sculpture, installation and institutional critique, my practice is an ongoing exploration of social justice that blurs the boundaries between, art, law, governance, and consultancy. Looking toward alternative cosmologies and knowledge systems predating Judaeo-Christian or colonial narratives, I am interested in interrogating the legacies of empire with a particular interest in Commonwealth and Tropical epistemologies of resistance. By questioning how embedded societal structures form our laws and guide our berhaviour, my work attempts to rethink our entanglement with the human and more-than-human world, and looks towards alternative ways of living and working.

I originally studied and trained in law [LL.B (Hull), MA Social Justice & Education (UCL IOE)] and worked in British civil rights NGOs before obtaining a BA(Hons) in Ceramics at Harrow/Westminster University and an MA at the Royal College of Art. I then completed a practice-led PhD at Roehampton University where I researched legal aesthetics and performance art through my works Karaoke Court and Voices From The Courts. I have taught MA Sculpture at the Royal College of Art and MA Politics & Art at Goldsmiths.

Currently, I am the Guest Curator of Organisational Development at John Hansard Gallery, undertaking a research residency with Camden Art Centre exploring the colonial middle (funded by the Paul Mellon Centre), devising an anti-racist project evaluation framework for the Centre for Equity and Inclusion (University of Sheffield), and developing new practices for myself in decolonial tropicality under the Joseph Rowntree Foundation’s Visionaries Programme.’

See this on the University’s website here and on WSA research site

• 06/03/2025: FRANCIS GENE ROWE, WSA Teaching Fellow in Global Media · Years of experience in education (primary, secondary and higher), research, editing and events organising & management. In-person workshop with MA ACL students. The workshop is not public, but audio-visual documentation will be shared afterwards.
• 08/05/2025: DR ADILA LAÏDI, Algerian-Palestinian museum director + art historian who formerly led the Khalil Sakakini Cultural Centre and The Palestinian Museum. The leading authority on Palestinian art has been awarded the French National Order of Merit. In-person lecture with MA ACL and Contemporary Curating students. The lecture is not public, but the slideshow will be shared afterwards.
• 06/2025: PROFESSOR DAN ASHTON: Business Planning
• 06/2025: DR SHAN WANG, Lecturer in Design Management. Shan’s research interests include: product and service design for ageing and health; developing inclusive products and services that empower healthier living, support independent ageing, and enhance quality of life; design for healthier community spaces, and exploring how design can shape inclusive, supportive community spaces that foster physical, mental, and social well-being across the lifespan.
• 07/2025: PROFESSOR TERESA DILLON

• 2025 Autumn: Roundtable with MA ACL staff.
• 2025 Autumn: PROFESSOR ELEONORA BELFIORE. Professor of Space, Place & Creative Economies; Deputy Director, Centre for Creative Economies, Coventry University. Honorary Professor, University of Aberdeen. Director of WIASN, Women in Academia Support Network. ADHD. Online.
• 2025 Autumn: Two US art historians working internationally in Singapore and UK: DR KARIN G. OEN, Head of Art History + Centre for Contemporary Art Nanyang Technological University, and PROFESSOR LOUISE SIDDONS (Head of Department of Art, Media and Technology, Winchester Gallery Director, University of Southampton. Online.
• 2025 Autumn: Part II with DR JACK KY TAN

The Masterclasses were successfully initiated as part of the ARTD6223 INDUSTRY PROJECT module 2023-2024 while Kai was Module Lead, without additional budget. By operationalising tentacular connections with the University of Southampton staff who were from diverse departments and job families ( including not just academic but professional staff), career stages (ranging from early career researchers in precarious contracts to Head of School), disciplinary (digital media, curatorial practice), generational (including Gen Z-ers as peer role models), cultural (Europe, Asia) backgrounds , the Masterclasses had helped to decolonise and internationalise the new programme curricula, as well as raise the new MA’s profile within the University, and enact/perform how change-making must be a non-hierarchical, non-siloed and collective practice within and beyond the art school ecosystem and the role of creative education within a large, multi-disciplinary Higher Education system. The Masterclasses, as well as the Study Visit that Kai also curates, were consistently flagged up by students as highlights of their student experience. Guests included:

• 6/2/2024: Winchester School of Art Technicians: Dave Gibbons, Specialist Photography Technician, Eszter Evans, Moving Images Technician, and Jess Curtis, Media Technician. Said Jess: ‘
  It was great to have the opportunity to talk a bit about the media stores to students who might otherwise not engage with the resources that it can provide, so thank you! ‘
• 13/2/2024: Carol Chenge Hu, Winchester Gallery Assistant and Arts Coordinator, who candidly shared her own career trajectory, Chinese work culture of ‘996’ and study cultures. This was followed by a tour of the Gallery featuring a queer-themed exhibition that Carole had assisted in setting up. The long line of students waiting to speak to her afterwards said everything.
• 20/2/2024: Student Support Services: Workshop on sexual harassment: recognising what it is in UK, university and workplace contexts; cultural nuances; power dynamics; harassment and boundaries in general; UK law; advocacy (calling out; self-advocacy). The session had both practical, pedagogical and professional values. It made it clear that leadership is about calling out on and eradicating sexism, misogyny and patriarchal approaches — and, for that matter, bullying, racism, ableism, ageism, transphobia, xenophobia, so on and so forth. The skills we learnt were applicable beyond the remit of ‘sexual harrassment’, but to consider situations where there is disparity in power, and power underpins the MA’s ongoing campaign to critically and creatively unpack ‘arts and cultural leadership’, and to outline its possibilities as a more equitable practice of change-making.  
• 20/2/2024: Dave Gibbons, Specialist Photography Technician, returned to speak about his creative research which spans both analogue (photo-collage) and digital photography (including the activation of generative AI as artistic tool). The session vastly inspired several students, including Tianyi Wang who went on to create an outstandingly discursive and personal essay-film for his Final Project.
• 27/2/2024: Dr Ruohan Tang, Global Media Management Teaching Fellow, on his role as international award-winning film producer. Said Dr Tang: ‘I also really enjoy the time spent in your classroom. Looking forward to having more chances to work with your program later!’
• 5/3/2024: Professor Larry Lynch, Professor of Performance Writing and Head of Winchester School of Art, on his role as Co-Executive Director of the Belarus Free Theatre, an award-winning, independent company committed to producing, educating and campaigning in the fields of the arts, internationalism, and social justice, and the transformative power of arts and culture.
• 12/3/2024: Michael Kurniawan, PhD candidate and MA Arts and Cultural Leadership Teaching Assistant, who discussed failure and vulnerability. This was powerful as these themes are under-discussed and often taboo in both leadership and East and Southeast Asian contexts.
• 23/4/2024: Dr Shepuya Famwang, Global Media Management Teaching Fellow, who discussed citizen journalism and social media.
• 5/2024: Professor Yuanyuan Yin, on her world-leading research on  inclusive service design for the ageing population.

The exact formats of the Masterclasses vary, but there are 3 basic questions that we will ask our guests – how do we understand and do leadership, and what next?

• Prior to session: Students prepare questions for guests by reading on their research and practice.
• First 5 minutes: WARMING UP:  Host: Introduction to MASTERCLASSES, ground rules, housekeeping, mention filming and Padlet  
• Next 30 minutes: WORKING OUT: Host + guest CHAT:
  • 1) What do you understand by ‘arts and cultural leadership? (Your understanding versus dominant understanding of leadership; offer provocations)
  • 2) How do you do arts and cultural leadership? (What have you been working on) 
  • 3) What next? (What do you see for the future / your future? What’s wrong with what we have; homework for our students and audiences)
• Next 10-15 minutes: QUESTIONS + ANSWERS From students + from public + on Padlet / on Teams
• Final 5 minutes: KICKING OFF: Feedback for today; what’s next   
• After the session: Debrief with students.

• The Masterclasses are inclusive spaces. By joining, you agree to abide by our community guidelines.
• To ensure that the session is a safe space, there will be a Padlet which enables anonymous responses.
• The sessions are hosted on Microsoft Teams. Unfortunately we are not able to provide professional services for captioning or British Sign Language. Clearly, AI-generated automatic captioning remains racist and inaccurate, but I am endeavouring to improve the set up to enable professional captioning, and the use of zoom.
• During the session, I will also write down keywords and terms
• Queries, access needs: Dr Kai Syng Tan k.s.tan@soton.ac.uk

FUNDING:

Since 02/2025, funded by: Department of Art, Media and Technology, Winchester School of Art, University of Southampton.

CO-DELIVERY TEAM:

Staff and students of MA Arts and Cultural Leadership. The former include Dr Dimitra Gkitsa and Dr Yaiza Hernández Velázquez, both Lecturers in Curating and Cultural Leadership.

PRODUCTION TEAM:

• Post-production specialist (editing, captioning, creating the intro and outro): Henry Zhang Xinyu.
  • Henry Zhang is a PhD candidate in User Experience Design at the University of Southampton.
  • A member of the International Society of Typographic Designers and a contracted photographer for the 500px Group.
  • With an MA in Communication Design and a BA in Graphic Art academic background and a strong academic foundation in creative thinking, UX/UI, visual communication design.
  • See Henry’s portfolio here.

• Filming and post-production advice: Eszter Evans, WSA Moving Images Technician.
  • Eszter Evans is a media production professional with over 10+ years of experience in creative, fast-paced environments.
  • Currently, as a Moving Image Technician at Winchester School of Art, she supports academic programs and leads workshops. Eszter’s background includes coordinating film projects and providing technical expertise in pre-production, production, and post-production.
  • Her diverse career spans film production, animation, and media studies, all backed by a strong academic foundation in film history and theory.
  • See her IMDB entry here
• Audio recording and additional audio-visual advice: Jess Curtis, WSA Media Technician
• Concept, direction, delivery: Kai Syng Tan, WSA MA Arts and Cultural Leadership Programme Leader

CONCEPT, DIRECTION:

Conceptualised and designed in 2019 by Kai as a public-facing, student-led effort to bring creative, speculative and liberatory approaches to leadership, and carried out in the inaugural 2023-2024 MA Arts and Cultural Leadership when Kai joined Winchester School of Art, University of Southampton, the Masterclasses have been made public since Spring 2025.