New Director appointed at Collective

Collective, the contemporary art centre on Calton Hill, has announced the appointment of Sorcha Carey as new Director.  

This appointment marks a new chapter in the evolution of Collective, which opened its redeveloped home on the City Observatory site on Calton Hill in 2018. Collective’s mission is to bring people together around new art and in its first year on Calton Hill the centre for contemporary art welcomed over 400,000 visitors.  

Sorcha joins the gallery as it seeks to consolidate and develop its programme, trading enterprises, and fundraising activity following the pandemic. Currently Director of Edinburgh Art Festival and Chair of Festivals Edinburgh, Sorcha takes over the leadership role at Collective following the departure of Director Kate Gray earlier this year. 

Sorcha Carey brings extensive leadership and senior management experience gained in a range of different cultural contexts to her new role, combined with a passion for sharing contemporary art practice with the widest possible audience, and specialist expertise of working with artists to realise new projects. Director of Edinburgh Art Festival since 2011, Sorcha has led the festival through a period of sustained development, initiating a range of new supported opportunities for artists and inviting new voices into the festival’s programming approach. 

Chair of Collective’s board of trustees, Anne Bonnar, said: “I am delighted to welcome Sorcha Carey as Collective’s new Director. Sorcha has a strong track record in supporting artists, broadening audiences, and in fundraising.  She has a wealth of experience in forging local, national, and international partnerships.  Sorcha will lead Collective into our next chapter, as we strive to be a bold, collaborative, and inclusive centre for contemporary art.” 

Sorcha Carey said: “For over 35 years, Collective has been at the forefront of supporting contemporary artists to share their unique perspectives with the world. I am extremely excited to contribute to the latest phase in their journey, as they continue to develop their home on Calton Hill as a contemporary observatory for the city, where together artists and audiences can shape new ways of thinking and seeing.” 

Sorcha will take up her new post in February 2022.