Rachel Dedman is a curator, writer and art historian specialised in contemporary art and design from the Middle East. Since 2019 she has been the Jameel Curator of Contemporary Art from the Middle East at the Victoria & Albert Museum, London. Recent projects for the V&A include exhibitions Jameel Prize: Moving Images, 2024, and Jameel Prize: Poetry to Politics, 2021, showcasing the work of contemporary artists from across the Middle East and South Asia, as well as Beirut Mapped, a commissioned writing platform for Lebanese artists, and the foundation of the Jameel Fellowship artist residency programme.

Beyond the V&A, Rachel was the co-curator of the State of Fashion Biennale 2024: Ties that Bind, alongside Louise Bennetts. In 2023/24, Rachel curated Material Power: Palestinian Embroidery for Kettle’s Yard and The Whitworth, UK, an exhibition which evolved from her work on the cultural and political histories of Palestinian dress for the Palestinian Museum, West Bank, 2014-2018. The exhibition will travel in new forms to Hayy Jameel, Jeddah, V&A Dundee, and MoMu, Antwerp in 2025. She is also the author of three books on this subject: Stitching the Intifada, 2024, Labour of Love, 2018, and At the Seams, 2016. Rachel studied the History of Art at Oxford and Harvard Universities, and lectures at conferences worldwide. She is the Chair of the Board of Metroland Cultures, delivering the Brent Biennale in London.