Kirsteen helps design a strong future for Creative Orkney

Orkney fashion designer, Kirsteen Stewart, is bringing her expertise and experience in the creative industries to a new part-time role as project manager for Creative Orkney.

Kirsteen’s key focus will be on supporting and boosting the membership of Creative Orkney, which draws together traditional and contemporary professional craft makers from throughout the islands.

The project manager’s post was previously held by Edgar Balfour, who is now focusing solely on his work with Orkney Food and Drink.

Kirsteen’s Creative Orkney post is funded by Orkney Islands Council (OIC), Highland and Islands Enterprise (HIE), and Creative Orkney as part of a three-year funding package of sector support totalling £117,000.

She said: “I’m really excited by this new role and very much looking forward to supporting the members of Creative Orkney. I’ve experienced first-hand the benefits of being part of this network of incredibly talented makers and designers.

“Over the coming weeks, I’ll be talking to all of the businesses within Creative Orkney, finding out what makes them tick and identifying anything they feel they’d benefit from in terms of future support,” added Kirsteen, who is based at Ortak’s Kirkwall offices two days a week.

“I’ll also be looking at ways in which we can boost membership, strengthening our collective voice and enabling more collaboration between everyone working under the Creative Orkney umbrella.

“In addition, I want to make sure young people who express a desire to work in the creative industries locally, particularly in the traditional and endangered crafts, have the guidance and backup they need as they represent the next generation of Orkney makers.”

Chair of Creative Orkney, Mike Gardens, said: “We’re delighted to have someone with Kirsteen’s creative experience join us to build on the many years of excellent work carried out by Edgar Balfour.

“Orkney enjoys a fantastic reputation for the quality of its rich and varied creative output, which is testament to the passion and dedication of our local makers and designers. However, we’re all working within a very competitive and demanding marketplace nationally and internationally, with the collective and supportive approach we take to marketing the Orkney brand and our creative goods likely to become even more crucial in the coming months and years.

“With Kirsteen on board, we’ll hopefully be well placed to meet that challenge, continuing to evolve Creative Orkney for the benefit of members, new and old, protecting traditional islands skills and encouraging fresh creative talent into the fold.”

Stuart Allison, enterprise manager at OIC, said: “Orkney’s creative businesses are a vital element of the islands’ economy. With this in mind, OIC, in partnership with HIE, is always keen to identify new ways of helping our creative businesses, building on the assistance delivered over the years through the Orkney Marketing programme and other economic development initiatives. Funding a dedicated project manager’s post for Creative Orkney is seen as an effective way of ensuring the group is well placed to further develop its important work supporting our talented makers, designers and artists.”

Maureen Shearer, senior development manager at HIE’s Orkney team, added: “As a membership organisation, Creative Orkney plays a key role in maintaining Orkney’s reputation for outstanding quality, with its collective and collaborative approach to working setting an example to other regions in Scotland and the UK. Kirsteen’s background, and ongoing work as a successful fashion designer, makes her the ideal fit for the project manager’s role as she brings both a creative perspective and business experience to the job.”

Creative Orkney, formerly the Orkney Crafts Association, was set up in 1991. Some of the membership benefits include eligibility to be included in the Creative Orkney Trail and brochure, a full listing on the orkney.com website and inclusion in digital promotional campaigns, subsidised attendance at national exhibitions or trade fairs, the opportunity to participate in group advertising, and eligibility to attend local events organised by Creative Orkney.

For more details on membership, visit www.orkney.com/creative/membership