Rachel Gadsden is an artist whose work is presented nationally and internationally. She develops solo exhibitions and performances that explore universal themes of humanity. Her work has received support from major public arts organisations, including Arts Council England, Arts Council Cymru, British Council Arts and Unlimited. Her artworks are held in significant private and institutional collections, such as HM The King’s Royal Art Collection, UK Parliament, Mandela’s Walk to Freedom in South Africa, FIFA in Switzerland, The National Paralympic Heritage Trust, Hyundai in South Korea, and Roche in Switzerland.
She has been awarded major commissions across six Paralympic Games, Beijing, London, Sochi, Brazil, Tokyo and Paris, and has completed four commissions for the UK Parliament. Gadsden was named CRIPtic Arts Breakthrough Artist in 2024 and is currently commissioned by UCL for the “Words Matter” project examining historical and contemporary eugenics.
She recently developed PostHuman, a live visual and sound performance with composer Freddie Meyers, presented at the Barbican Centre in November 2024 and within UCL’s “Words Matter Exhibition” (Nov 2025–Feb 2026). She is undertaking PhD research at Loughborough University on embodied constriction and Disability Arts and received an Honorary Doctorate from London South Bank University in 2016.
Gadsden is part of Cripping Breath, a year-long interdisciplinary project developed in partnership with the University of Sheffield and supported by the Wellcome Trust. Through this work, she contributes to an ongoing exploration of breathing as lived experience. She will take part in a series of residencies at The Art House across 2026 and 2027, leading to the development of new work and a public presentation in late 2027.