Gaynor Kavanagh is a Professor of Museum Studies with research interests in memory and the senses. 

Following 19 years at the University of Leicester, she held senior management roles at the Bath Spa University, Falmouth University and the University of Southampton.  

She was the Dean of Cardiff School of Art & Design at Cardiff Metropolitan University 2005-15, overseeing the transformation of the School, including the development of its £14m new building on the Llandaff campus.

On her retirement, she was made an Emeritus Professor at Cardiff Metropolitan University.

She is the author of three books on museums: Dream Spaces: Memory and the Museum (2000), Museums and the First World War (1994) and History Curatorship (1990). She has edited a further seven books, including those in the Making Histories series.

Professor Kavanagh has been an adviser to the National Railway Museum, the National Audit Office and the National Museum of Wales.

She was a member of the Expert Panel appointed by the Welsh Assembly to review the future of local government funded museums in Wales; the report for which was published in 2015.

She has previously been chair of the Cardiff based medical charity Mothers of Africa.  

She held the role of chair of the National Portfolio Organisation, Open-Up Music, between 2014-1021.  Open-Up Music opens up music to young disabled musicians and has set a standard for inclusivity in the arts.

She currently defines herself as a cat-owning, Welsh gardener who writes stories. Originally from Pontypool, Professor Kavanagh now lives near Abergavenny.