News

Creative Edinburgh appoints new Co-Chairs of the Board

29 March 2023

Creative Edinburgh has appointed two new Chairs of the Board.

Marie Christie is currently Head of Development for Events at VisitScotland. She has more than 25 years of experience delivering and supporting festivals and events and raising the profile of Scotland as a cultural destination. Having worked across the public, private and third sectors she has run high profile campaigns, produced major events and led key national initiatives.

Miriam Nelken has a successful track record of supporting creative people and places to thrive through a diverse portfolio of work across the UK. Most recently she was responsible for commissioning and overseeing the Scotland-wide Dandelion project for EventScotland and prior to that her roles have included Executive Producer of the London Borough of Culture 2020, Producer for Artichoke, Director of Creative Barking and Dagenham, Head of Arts at Croydon Council and a wide range of freelance work for organisations including Arts Council England and Goldsmiths, University of London.

"As Co-Chairs Miriam and I are excited by the opportunity to bring our complementary skills together and contribute to the ongoing success of Creative Edinburgh. The Creative Sector in Edinburgh is critical to the city’s success and vibrancy and I’m really looking forward to working with the Board and Exec Team with my fellow Chair to support the sector and help it thrive.” - Marie Christie

“I look forward to working with Marie to support Creative Edinburgh’s fantastic team, board, creative community and partners, and to bringing new opportunities, people and perspectives into its next chapter.” - Miriam Nelken

The appointment of Christie and Nelken follows the resignation of former Chair of the Board, Jim Hollington. Since 2020, Hollington has helped guide Creative Edinburgh through the COVID-19 pandemic, hiring a new Executive Team, and many other achievements including the revitalisation of the events programme and memberships.

"It’s been an honour to support Creative Edinburgh as both Board Member and Chair, and to see how the organisation plays a central role in supporting the success of creative people in this city, especially those working alone or in small organisations," says Hollington.

"With a talented team under Ola Wojtkiewicz’s leadership and a new membership model just launched, it’s the perfect time to pass the Chair role onto Marie and Miriam. I’m excited to see the organisation evolve and I’ll remain a strong advocate for Edinburgh’s creative community."

The Co-Chairs will work in tandem with the Executive Director and the Executive Team to drive the strategic vision of the organisation while ensuring the continued success of the Board of Directors in helping Creative Edinburgh meet its strategic goals.

"Jim has been a generous colleague and mentor over the last three years while he held a role of Chair of the Board at Creative Edinburgh. I will miss his guidance, support and our Tuesday morning discussions over coffee on anything from advocacy to website makeovers. However, I’m sure that we will continue to ponder creative ways of collaborating for years to come through DanceBase’s and Creative Edinburgh’s shared aspirations," says Executive Director Ola Wojtkiewicz.

"I’m genuinely looking forward to working with Marie and Miriam as Co-Chairs of Creative Edinburgh Board of Directors. Their complementary skill sets, vast experience in the arts, and passion for the creative community will undoubtedly bring a lot of value to the work of our organisation."