Dot Howard

Dot Howard is an artist and participatory arts practitioner. She is an Associate Artist at Sainsbury Centre. Dot uses live art as a tool for engaging adults with learning disabilities and people living with dementia in care settings and arts venues, building rapport through multi-sensory, in-the-moment interaction. Dot’s work in these areas has moved into more public domains such as festivals, galleries and theatres including Norfolk and Norwich Festival, The Royal Opera House, The British Art Show 8, Barbican Art Box and several independent publicly funded projects.

Dot will be speaking at the Creative Museums Summit 2026 :

Profound Play at the Art Museum

How does creative play help adults connect with museum collections? Join Learning Programme Manager Rach Anstey-Sanders, Associate Artist Dot Howard and UEA Research Practitioner Dr Patrick Yarker as they discuss a Sainsbury Centre research project exploring the role of creative play in adult engagement with art. This conversation examines the opportunities and challenges of introducing playful interventions within a curated museum setting, shares key findings from the research, and considers the implications for audience engagement, interpretation and learning practice. Discover how play can foster deeper, more meaningful connections between adult visitors and museum collections.