Charlotte Hetherington to leave Artica Svalbard after six years

Photo credit: Tom Warner

After six years leading Artica Svalbard, Director Charlotte Hetherington will be leaving the organisation this October to take up a new role as CEO of Kilmartin Museum in Argyll, Scotland.

Charlotte joined Artica in 2020 and has led the organisation through a significant period of development, strengthening its position as an international platform for artistic and cultural engagement with Svalbard and the wider Nordics.

Under her leadership, Artica has expanded its residency and public programmes, welcoming artists, writers and researchers from Norway and around the world to develop ambitious new work in Svalbard. She has strengthened Artica’s partnerships locally, nationally and internationally, and developed new collaborations connecting artistic practice with some of the most pressing questions facing the Arctic today — from climate change and environmental responsibility to geopolitics, community and social change.

The Board and team at Artica are enormously grateful for Charlotte’s vision, commitment and energy over the past six years, and for the lasting contribution she has made to the organisation. We wish her every success as she begins this exciting new chapter at Kilmartin Museum.

“Leading Artica and having the opportunity to live and work on Svalbard for the past six years has been an extraordinary privilege. I am incredibly proud of what we have achieved together and deeply grateful to the artists, writers, partners, colleagues and communities who have shaped Artica during my time here.

Svalbard is a remarkable place to work, and it has taught me an enormous amount about the role cultural organisations can play in bringing people together, creating space for difficult conversations and responding to places undergoing profound change. Leaving Artica and Svalbard comes with very mixed emotions, but I know the organisation has an exciting future ahead and I look forward to following its next chapter from Scotland.” - Charlotte Hetherington

Artica’s Board is currently leading the recruitment of a new Director, with further information about the organisation’s next chapter to be announced in due course.