Independent Director
Jade Townsend was appointed as a Director to the RRA board in November 2024. Jade Townsend is of Ngāti Kahungunu, Te Ātihaunui-a-Pāpārangi and British descent. Born and raised in Whanganui, she moved to Liverpool as a teenager before training as an artist at Manchester Metropolitan University. She holds a BA Hons in Fine Art Painting, and has been awarded residencies at Tylee Cottage, Whanganui, BGSU, Ohio, Artspace, Auckland, Slade School of Art, London, Red Gate Gallery, Beijing. She is co-founder and co-director of Season, a commercial gallery in Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland, where she is currently based. Jade is also a curator experienced in activating “non-gallery” spaces to insert cross-cultural art interventions in unexpected, aspirational locations. Her recent curatorial partnerships and projects include Precinct Properties, Objectspace, Wynn Hamlyn and SALA.