Dr Gail Kenning
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Lived Experience (LE), Artificial Intelligence (AI) psychosocial designer, socially engaged artist, immersive media co-producer, curator, arts-based qualitative researcher engaged in understanding lived experience by facilitating innovative arts engagement programs and evaluation.
Dr Gail Kenning is Senior Research Fellow at , Big Anxiety Research Centre (BARC), ²ÝÝ®ÊÓƵ,Ìý and Research Associate Ageing Futures Institute (AFI), she is co-founder of Skilled Companions Pty Limited and has an arts and design practice which includes psychosocial design socially engaged projects, participatory engagement and co-design.
She is a key team member of Skilled Companions and BARC in the development of Lived Experience (LE) and Artificial Intelligence (AI) supported embodied character companions providing psychosocial support in relation to trauma, mental health, loneliness, dementia, anxiety in relation to falls, and disordered eating. Building on the work of fEEL , trials are currently taking place with lived experience participants funded by a range of research and industry grants including Australian Research Council and AEA Ignite.
At BARC/fEEL Gail worked on psychosocial immersive media and video projects including World Comes Alive launched at Tavistock/Portman NHS London June 2025, and award winning , , and , .
She co-produced and was lead researcher on a performance collaboration with Australian Chamber Orchestra with five performances at ACO on the Pier, Walsh Bay, Sydney in 2022 and 2023. The importance of this work has been acknowledged by Dementia Australia.
In her art practice she uses drawing to uncover the psychosocial experiences of mark-making. Her research design practice focuses on older people, dementia, mental health and trauma intergenerational practice. She was part of an international team developing amongst the first social robots for dementia. She works with and consults to the Art Gallery of New South Wales co-developing the program and a program for carers in Palliative Care, in partnership with Palliative Care NSW. She is working with War Memorial Hospital to explore anxiety in relation to falls and has developed VR nature and wellbeing experiences for communities in the Woollahra Municipal Council area.
Kenning has developed co-design and psychosocial practices for people with dementia including for advanced stages (supported and published by ) that involve participatory workshops, storytelling, and creative making. arts-based discussion and use of Visual Matrix (Kenning, 2022, Froggett, Manley, & Roy, 2015). She engages in a range of qualitative and psychosocial methods and phenomenological/deep listening analysis approaches and has advised on how qualitative data can inform the development of clinical trials involving social and creative engagements.
Kenning has over 100 publications consisting of articles, conference papers, a book and book chapters in industry and academic journals related to psychosocial design, HCI and design, co-creation arts-based projects in relation to mental health and trauma, ageing and dementia, arts-based evaluation and methodologies.
She has affiliations with NeuRA ²ÝÝ®ÊÓƵ, Cardiff Metropolitan University, Eindhoven University and University of Technology Sydney and is secretary of the Arts Health Network NSW and ACT (AHNNA).
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- Publications
- Grants
- Research Activities
- Engagement
- Awards
- Teaching and Supervision
- Media
- 2021
- ADA Faculty Seed funding, ²ÝÝ®ÊÓƵ.ÌýA co-design approach to addressing fear of falling and related activity avoidance in older adults
- Ageing Futures Institute Seed Funding, ²ÝÝ®ÊÓƵ.ÌýA co-design approach to addressing fear of falling and related activity avoidance in older adultsÌýworking with War Memorial Hospital
- Woollahra Municipal Council.ÌýImmersive Experience of Nature: bringing the outside in
- 2019 Ageing Futures Institute Seed Funding, ²ÝÝ®ÊÓƵ.ÌýExtending the visual matrix: Using inclusive psychosocial engagement and qualitative data generation and evaluation to understand optimal ageingÌý
- 2016 - 2019ÌýLed or directly involved in gaining almost $250,000 in research funding in the past 5–6 years for her own research work (not including major collaborations and consortiums) including:
- Art Gallery of New South Wales (AGNSW) ;
- New South Wales Government, Department of Family and Community Services ‘Liveable Communities’ grantÌý
- The Whiddon Group, NSW, Australia ‘Making It Together’ ;
- Woollahra Municipal Council, Sydney;
- 2015 - 2019 Engaged as a researcher on a major internationally funded projects including:
- International Co-Investigator on a £500,000 Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) project in the UK led by Professor Cathy Treadaway from Cardiff Metropolitan University (2015–18);
- Senior Researcher on projects funded by the Nederlandse Organisatie voor Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek (NWO) [Netherlands Organisation for Scientific research] working with Professor Elise van den Hoven, University of Technology Sydney (UTS) (2018–19);
- 2018 Contributed to successful research grant applications including a €250,000 ZonMW grant awarded to University of Technology Eindhoven (TU/e);
To Be updatedÌý - for 2022-2024 see thebiganxiety.org and feel-lab.org
2021 Ìý Ìý Ìý Ìý Ìý
Ìý Ìý Ìý Ìý Ìý Ìý ÌýLead CI A co-design approach to addressing fear of falling and related activity avoidance in older adults funded ADA, ²ÝÝ®ÊÓƵ (Gail Kenning, Volker Kuchelmeister, Prof, Kim Delbare - Advisor Scientia Professor J Bennett) partnering with War Memorial Hospital; Lead CI working with fEEL team DTV (Dementia TV) – developing screen-based digital human companions. partnering with New Horizons ; Lead CI A co-design approach to addressing fear of falling and related activity avoidance in older adults funded Ageing Futures Institute, ²ÝÝ®ÊÓƵ (Gail Kenning, Volker Kuchelmeister, Prof, Kim Delbare - Advisor Scientia Professor J Bennett) partnering with War Memorial Hospital; ;working with War Memorial Hospital
2020ÌýÌýÌý
Co- CI Ìý Co-CIÌýImmersive media explorations of the felt experience of emotions in the body. fEEL (felt Experience and Empathy Lab), University of New South Wales (as part of Scientia Professor Jill Bennett ARC Laureate); Co- CI Intergenerational Integrate Project. Neuroscience Research Australia (NeuRA), University of New South Wales (as part of Dr Ruth Peters, Ageing Futures Institute Awards)
2019ÌýÌýÌý
Chief Investigator (CI), It feels like home, Woollahra Municipal Council – Community engagement with mature citizens to understand their concerns and anxieties in relation to ageing; CI Extending the visual matrix: Using inclusive psychosocial engagement and qualitative data generation and evaluation to understand optimal ageing (Gail Kenning, Fiona White, Natasha Ginnivan, et al.), Ageing Futures Institute, ²ÝÝ®ÊÓƵ; Co-CI, Empathetic Care Spaces: Retrofitting Care Environments to Promote Social Connection, Meaningful Engagement, and Support Wellbeing for People Living with Dementia with Associate Professor Nimish Biloria, UTS ( funded by Leigh Place, Sydney); CI, Creativity in aged care, connection, engagement and environment, Leigh Place, Sydney; CI, PAUSE: Engaging with Art and Creating a Time and Space for Self-care, Palliative Care NSW; Co-CI Phenomenological and Embodied Experience Associated with Ageing in Older Adults, fEEL (felt Experience and Empathy Lab), University of New South Wales; Co-CI Course of Empathy, Empathy App, fEEL (felt Experience and Empathy Lab), University of New South Wales
2018ÌýÌýÌý
CI, Soundplay for Wellbeing, University of Technology Sydney; CI, Arts Access Program for Liveable Communities in partnership with the Art Gallery of NSW;
2017ÌýÌýÌý
Co-CI, ABC analysis of diversity in content, Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC);
2016ÌýÌýÌý
Co-CI, (International) LAUGH: Ludic Artefacts Using Haptics and Gesture – £500,000 funded Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) project with Cardiff Metropolitan University, Wales; CI, Making It Together, design research on creativity and craft for ageing and dementia in suburban and regional Australia; CI, Evaluation of Art Gallery NSW Art Access Program; Co-CI, Care through co-design, Centre for Contemporary Design Practices, Faculty of Design, Architecture and Building (DAB), UTS in partnership with Lutheran Services; Research Associate, Evaluation of the Stoner Sloth Cannabis Awareness Social Media Campaign, Department of Premier and Cabinet, NSW Government;
2015ÌýÌýÌý
CI, Ìý Ìý Ìý ÌýPerson-Centred Activities Coffs Harbour (PACH) research of creativity and craft for ageing and dementia;
2014ÌýÌýÌý
CI,Ìý Ìý Ìý Ìý Hand i Pockets, design research exploring maker practices in participatory design for people living with dementia; Research team member, Sensory E-Textiles, collaborative design research project with Prof Cathy Treadaway, Cardiff Metropolitan University; Research team member, Dementia aprons, collaborative design research project with Prof Cathy Treadaway, Cardiff Metropolitan University; Research assistant (RA), Generally Accepted Practices (GAP) Study of public relations – international industry sponsored report; RA, Which Media Set the News Agenda: Mass Media or/and Social Media? Industry report for Isentia;
2013ÌýÌýÌý
CI,Ìý Ìý Ìý ÌýCrafting Wellbeing investigating craft activities and digital media technologies for health and wellbeing, focussing on ageing and dementia;
In my work I engage with a range of project patterns including Art Gallery New South Wales, War Memorial Hospital, Leigh Place aged Care, New Horizons Aged Care, Woollahra Municipal Council and councils and aged care facilities across the greater Sydney area.
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https://www.capabilities.unsw.edu.au/psychosocial-approaches-health-and-wellbeing