Dr Les Johnson is a Visiting Researcher in the Faculty of Arts, Design and Media at Birmingham City University.He was awarded his PhD for research into cultural visualisation, entrepreneurship and innovation. He is an alumnus of the Royal College of Art and was CEO of multi-award-winning design, media, marketing and management consultancy firm Equator International.
Dr Les Johnson is founder and Chair of the National Windrush Museum set up to research, document, exhibit, and preserve the legacy of the Windrush generation and their successors. Born in Jamaica, he is a part of the second wave of Windrush migrants to Britain in the 1960s. His academic interests, cultural studies, entrepreneurship leadership and philanthropy are channelled through his foundation where he supports a range of projects, research and enterprise. His design pedagogy experience has been applied to learning and teaching in a variety of education institutions. His expertise in practice-based and practiced led research have been combined to innovate a practice-driven methodology.
He has worked for; BBC, Channel 4, Carlton Television, The Arts Council, The Tate, the South Bank Centre, Design Museum, IBM, BPI, Clydesdale Bank, Virgin and Sony among many other cultural development organisations including local, regional and central government. Dr Johnson has served on a range of Boards, has been a Non-Executive Director and consultant for public and private sector organisations at local, regional and national levels in the U.K. He also works internationally as counsel, lecturer and a consultant in business development and culture sectors.
Dr Johnson is a practising visual artist, musician and community development activist. He spends his time between research and consultancy bases in the U.K, USA and Jamaica.
