Lawrence Chiles – interview


Lawrence Chiles is head of design and digital media at the Royal Museums Greenwich. He heads a team of 20, working with internal and external designers on exhibition and programming projects, reports Pamela Buxton.


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How did you get into museum design?

It was a strange route! I have a background in contemporary art practice and worked with independent galleries in Newcastle before getting into web production and digital design via journalism. I joined the National Maritime Museum as digital project manager and became head of design and digital media in June last year.

Do you have any particular design heroes, past or present?
I hate these questions! I don't really have any design heroes, although I've always admired Neville Brody's work. And, artistically, seeing the Richard Hamilton exhibition recently reminded me of how brilliant and influential he has been.

What does your role at the National Maritime Museum entail?
It's an exciting place at the moment. My team covers everything from concept design to maintenance, including temporary and permanent galleries, setting design briefs and advising on wayfinding. It really is a very collaborative role - there are a lot of very talented people within the museum.

How many different design projects do you commission a year, and what sort of work is this?
We produce two major temporary exhibitions a year and altogether will be working on five or six major internal exhibition projects of various scales, plus producing learning resources and separate digital media projects.

Are you regularly approached by design teams?
Yes, which is good. I'm very keen to keep abreast of what people are up to. We're always on the look out for new people to work with.

How do you go about commissioning designers and architects?
Either we go through the Ojeu tendering process, or projects first go to the interior design studio to form the brief and then five to eight companies are invited to tender. There's always a research phase as to who might be appropriate to use, and we try to look for new approaches.

Casson Mann designed the new Nelson Navy National gallery
Casson Mann designed the new Nelson Navy National gallery.

What qualities do you look for?
We're looking for a spark. The museum has gone through a lot of change in the past few years. We're looking for agencies that can work with us in this shift to target new audiences but that can also find a way to balance this with the needs of our core audience. Designers have to be open to collaboration and willing to push the visitor-led experience.

What makes for a good gallery environment, and what roles can interactive and audio-visual design play within this?
A good gallery is one where visitors are immediately engaged and excited to explore the space and its contents.

Visitors are looking to have interactive design embedded in the exhibition and for this to offer a way to becoming more involved in the subject. Interactive and audio-visual design certainly have a huge role to play, but we work hard to decide what's appropriate and what is the best method to use.

The Turner & the Sea exhibition, for example, didn't need a huge amount of direct involvement with audio-visual design because the work itself was so strong. But with Visions of the Universe, this really helped to explain the images.

How long do you expect a permanent gallery design to last?
Ten to 15 years, but in the full knowledge that during that time, things will have to change and move around.

What aspects of exhibition design are the hardest to get right?
Interpretation of content can throw up some tense discussions, so making sure that this happens early enough so that everyone is comfortable and on board is probably the hardest part.

What is the most challenging part of your job?
Managing expectations is really challenging. We want to be ambitious but we can't do everything. Really understanding your audience so you are designing in an appropriate way is also a constant challenge.

What is the most rewarding part of your job?
Watching the public being in the spaces and having such a positive experience is the real reward, as well as getting feedback and press coverage so that you know it's been really well received by everyone.

Inside the Nelson Navy Nation gallery
Inside the Nelson Navy Nation gallery

What projects do you feel have turned out particularly successfully?
We've had some great success over the past 12-18 months. Ansel Adams and Turner have been two big shows for our internal design team that have been really popular. Visions of the Universe, designed by Biblioteque, was a really fantastic show, with the wow factor of the 25m-long Mars Window created by Kin Design, as is the new Nelson Navy Nation gallery designed by Casson Mann. It has been a busy but very positive time.

Traders: The East India Company and Asia gallery also put down a marker for involving visitor participation and alternative voices into the content of the show.

What key design projects are underway at the moment?
We're working on a new Children's Gallery aimed at up to seven-year-olds, with KCA London, due to open next spring. This summer, we've two new galleries opening - Ships, Clocks and Stars: the Quest for Longitude designed by Studio MB (opens 11 July), followed by the in-house designed Forgotten Fighters: the First World War at Sea (opens 2 August).

Generally, we're looking at getting more public participation in the future planning of our programmes, something happening with the very exciting REThink space that opened in April. It invites the public to help us define the future programme for the museum.

Do you have any favourite museums/ galleries that you take inspiration from?
I love spaces rather than individual museums. I really enjoy the South Bank and the Barbican in London, and I think the new Birmingham Library looks fantastic. I'd like for the National Maritime Museum to become more of a civic space where people can revisit, spend a bit of time there and feel they can make a contribution.








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