Myself, museums and galleries… and I.
My earliest impression of a museum was being taught how to cheat* and that the pester power of a gift shop is undeniable. By the age of seven, my Mum** introduced me to the Museum of East Asian Art. It became a firm favourite for both my brother and me. I’ve been obsessed ever since.
[I’ve started in the first person, and so shall I continue.]
I’ve worked for myself as a consultant since 2010.
This has involved serving organisations of all sizes. I believe in the freedom of independence and the power of people. I’ve been called an expert generalist with design at the core of my work.
[a] design agency is my company-of-one. Founded in 2015 and built on collaborations between hand-picked associates.
I’ll always be proud of a letter which I included within a small part of a wider project.
Stirling IPTW 2019
In 2019, the Preservation Trades Network (PTN) hosted the annual International Preservation Trades Workshop (IPTW) at the Engine Shed (HES). This was the first time IPTW had taken place in the UK.
Supporting the design, event wayfinding, and promotional materials was an excellent project which involved managing multiple stakeholders and commercial partners.
I’d like to draw particular attention to the delegate pack for the event. Delegates had previously received a plastic folder with hole-punched inserts detailing the programme for this multi-day event. The pack was expensive to create, not environmentally friendly, and a real burden to carry around—particularly for those who were less able.
I designed and delivered a new pack, the entirety of which was presented within a beautiful C4 envelope and contained A3 and A4 size handouts along with a letter from me and the production partners for the project.
I hope the text from the letter shall speak for itself, pasted below:
CRAFTED WITH LOVE
01/09/19
➔
Text reads, “We're incredibly proud to have supported Crafting the Future, the 23rd International Preservation Trades Workshop in 2019.
So proud in fact that I'm taking a little time to write a bit about the craftspeople who helped along the way.
The blue envelope which makes up your delegate pack is made of paper produced in Cumbria. It was hand finished in Yorkshire and printed in Aberdeenshire. The inserts within were printed on paper which includes recycled corn husks. These sheets were printed and finished in Stirling—about 600 meters from the Engine Shed.
Don't Walk believe that great design doesn't have to cost the earth. We have relied entirely on UK based companies who we believe care deeply about their craft and the environment. To ensure the future of traditional skills and the planet we live on we must make things with love.
We hope you love the event and take care of the materials which have been produced to support it. Your delegate pack can be recycled. The envelope itself is fully biodegradable thanks to advances in the foiling process.
Many thanks to the staff at Engine Shed for their assistance and enthusiasm throughout this project.
Crafted in partnership with—
G F SMITH, Windmill Printing, COMPASS PRINT, FENNER.
➔
Stewart Ainslie
—designer”
My values are simple:
I work with best-in-class creatives who are selected specifically for their individual expertise. They tend to be independent or freelance collaborators. They are often local. I call them associates because: [a] it starts with an a [b] the word partners isn’t accurate [c] they are not employees.
Philanthropy:
Sponsored Hidden Door Arts (Edinburgh) as [a] design agency
Held a non-exec director role at RYA Scotland (2020-2025)
Volunteer for RYA Scotland and ACVC Wargames Fellowship as a brand consultant
Previously volunteered for Stirling Highland Games, North East Scotland College, and Round Table
A potted history:
Branding - Dunblane Museum Logo - Dunblane Museum
Exhibition and Microsite - Britain’s Atlantic Walls - Dunblane Museum
Exhibition materials - Summer Skills - Engine Shed (Part of HES)
Print materials - Master Builders 2019 - Engine Shed (HES)
Commercial & Collaborations - UofG Shop - GU Heritage Retail Ltd
Event design and materials - IPTW (International Presentation Trades Workshop) - HES
Event materials - exhibition video and social graphics - Arts and Crafts Women - Engine Shed (HES)
Branding, marketing and web design - Stirling Framing Studio
Arts experiences:
Studied Art & Design at Falkirk College as a teenager
Attended a GSA ‘Summer School’ as a 15-year-old in the Mackintosh building
Worked with Dunblane Museum for over 15 years!
What’s this in aid of?
I have a long-standing record of working with museums, heritage organisations and cultural institutions, and bring a distinctive combination of strategic thinking, communications, governance, partnership-building and design expertise. We’ll see where that takes me in 2026-27—the dream is to deliver work from a ‘salon’ session…
* You’ll have to ask me.
** My mum is Janice Ainslie, a Museum Assistant Curator in her later life.