Kithmini Wimalasekera

Kithmini Wimalasekera leads the V&A X Adobe artist residencies programme giving a platform for emerging creatives and focusing on developing innovative public programmes to reach underserved people.  

Previously, Kithmini was Head of Participation and Community at Rambert contemporary dance company, where she renewed the public programme to attract diverse audiences, led on partnerships to develop the Manchester site and initiated a process of reflection for the organisation to decolonise dance. She worked at the London Borough of Bexley on initiatives exploring new ways to engage residents in placemaking and community cohesion through culture. At the Gulbenkian Foundation’s UK branch, she managed a grant funding portfolio to support innovation in participatory arts practice with, by and for underserved groups. She also worked at the Tower of London and Hampton Court Palace on major audience development projects. At the National Maritime Museum, she attracted diverse family audiences through her holistic approach to public programming.

Kithmini’s experiences have shaped her understanding of the role of culture in social justice and fuel her drive to develop practice to reach underserved groups. She is a mentor for Creative Access. She trained as a printmaker before discovering a curiosity in participation.