Rate My Professor Chris Bennewith

Professor Chris Bennewith is the Executive Dean of the Faculty of Arts, Humanities and Business at the University of Plymouth. In this role, he provides strategic leadership across the Plymouth Business School, the School of Law, Humanities and Social Sciences, and the School of Art, Design and Architecture, ensuring excellence in education, student experience, research, and innovation. He chairs the Reputation Steering Group and the University Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Committee, and is a member of Senate, the Academic Development and Partnership Committee, the IT and Digital Committee, and the UEG Risk Review Group. Additionally, he serves as a board member of Plymouth Culture. Bennewith joined the University in 2017 as Head of the School of Art, Design and Architecture, following his position as Associate Pro Vice-Chancellor for Enterprise at Toi Rauwharangi College of Creative Arts, Massey University, New Zealand.

Bennewith is an interactive media artist and designer, and a member of the Squidsoup international collective focused on digital and interactive media experiences. His research interests include developing visual vocabularies connecting digital and material worlds, and applying interactive art frameworks to the creative economy. He delivered the Inaugural Professorial Lecture titled "Interactive art and Plymouth's Creative Economy" in 2019, linking immersive artworks to Plymouth's creative ecology through partnerships in the cultural sector. Key publications include "Sublime and extended reality experiences to enhance emotional wellbeing for autistic people: A state of the art review and narrative synthesis" published in the International Journal of Social Psychiatry in 2024, and "Creative Coastal Futures: Developing cultural and creative industries" in 2025. His practice-based contributions feature the "Four Tet x Squidsoup" performance in 2023 and the "Green MAKING | MATERIALS | OBJECTS" exhibition in 2024. Bennewith has influenced Plymouth's creative sector via initiatives like The Bridge, promoting growth and resilience in the South West's creative industries.