About Me
As a seasoned design professional and museographer I have over 16 years’ experience in the cultural and heritage sector, working in museums and galleries across the UK and the Middle East. I am now based in Sydney, Australia.
I started my museums career at Tyne & Wear Archives & Museums, a local-authority museum service based in the North East of England, United Kingdom. What started out as an 8-week summer job became 12 years.
Leaving Tyne & Wear Archives & Museums in 2013 I moved to Saudi Arabia to join the King Abdulaziz Center for World Culture, a multimillion-dollar cultural initiative of the national oil company of Saudi Arabia, Saudi Aramco. In my role as Head of Design for the museum, I was the creative lead in the design and management of all aspects of the museum’s design projects, including its Middle Eastern Contemporary Art space. I had an extensive purview that encompassed development of initial scope and concept stages for displays and exhibitions, including contracting and procurement, production oversight and quality assessment, concluding with installation and WH&S compliance.
What is a ‘Museographer’?
Museographer comes from museography, a word which first appeared in the 18th century. Unlike the more modern “museology” which is defined as meaning “the general study of museums”, museography specifically relates to the theory and practice of museum design. Museography identifies as the art (or the techniques) of exhibitions, the discipline that deals with the museum in terms of architectural structure, layout of the collections, display and technical solutions, and spaces. Essentially, not just the theory, but the practical activities associated with museums and galleries.
So why call myself a ‘museographer’ and not just an ‘exhibition designer’?
The distinction is about scope. Unlike scenography (exhibition or stage design), which means the techniques involved in design and installing / fitting out display spaces, museographers have a much broader role.
Typically as head of a project, the museographer role is to coordinate all the technical and subject specialists working within a museum in the formation of galleries, exhibitions and displays. This is my background. I am concerned not only with the needs of the public and employ the communication methods most suitable for putting across the aims and message of the exhibition, but also everything related with technical installations, functional requirements, spatial requirements, accessibility, circulation, storage, security measures, and the conservation of the exhibited material.
I would say that I have an applied understanding of the multifaceted and far-reaching design needs of museums and galleries as I have built my career from the ground up through a variety of roles within the cultural heritage sector, principally within design and the management of design services. This helps me to present a strategic framework from which projects can grow and be tactically delivered.
My work has been grounded in the ability to work collaboratively and lead project teams comprised of different disciplines that deliver creative and innovative end results for institutional stakeholders.
I am passionate about bringing meaningful and engaging museum and gallery experiences and concepts to life for audiences through teamwork, inter-disciplinary collaboration and technological innovation.
Contact Me
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