James E French

With over two decades of experience in the South African arts and music industry, James E. French works with IKS Cultural Consulting team as our new Principal Consultant.

In 2022, James left his position as the Manager of the Samro CSI Foundation at the Southern African Music Rights Organization. During his seven years at SAMRO he worked with dedicated teams of arts, culture and human rights specialists in designing programmes, running events, researching priority areas, and ensuring the successful and the accountable distribution of funds for numerous successful projects.

Before stepping into his role as manager at SAMRO, James was the Deputy Director / Administrator of the award-winning visual arts Non-Profit Organisation, the Bag Factory Artists' Studios in Newtown Johannesburg for fourteen years.

James obtained his Bachelor’s Degree in BMus (Honours) and his Master’s Degree in Arts & Culture Management from Wits - University of the Witwatersrand where he focused his research on organisational sustainability in the arts non-profit sector.