Dodd, Philip
Director, Made in China (UK)

Philip Dodd is co-founder of ‘Made In China’ and ‘Made In Asia’ which develop cultural, educational and commercial projects between the UK and Asia. He is an award-winning broadcaster, commentator and agency chairman who was described in The Guardian in 2004 as ‘one of the two cleverest analysts of the political/cultural changes of his generation’. His work on national identity helped to underpin the government’s ‘Cool Britannia’ rebranding of the UK. He has given seminars to the Prime Minister’s Policy Unit, as well as to key media brands such as the BBC. In 1999, ‘Elle Decoration’ named him one of the UK’s top 5 cultural entrepreneurs.

Mr. Dodd was Director of London’s Institute of Contemporary Arts from 1997 – 2004, described by Tony Blair as having an ‘unparalleled reputation for innovation and new ideas’. During his tenure he founded the Cultural Entrepreneurs Club: a support agency for over 500 of London’s creative businesses.

He was also the first cultural figure in Britain to recognise the emerging importance of China, taking the ICA to Beijing and Shanghai in 1998 to complement the first visit to China of Tony Blair, and hosting a major Beijing arts and culture season at the ICA in 1999. He has published widely, in books, magazines and the national press, including the Observer, the Guardian and the Independent. His books include studies of art and value and two influential arguments on national identity: English Politics and Culture (co-editor) and The Battle Over Britain for the think-tank ‘Demos’. He has held various academic professorships and was deputy editor of the political magazine the New Statesman and founding editor of the British Film Institute’s award-winning magazine Sight and Sound and a consultant to Alan Yentob, currently the Creative Director of the BBC.