David Gilbert steps down as Chair of Creative United

David Gilbert steps down as Chair of Creative United

Earlier this month, we bade farewell to David Gilbert, who has stepped down as Chair of our Board of Directors.

David has been a driving force in the development and growth of the company for more than a decade, bringing his unique blend of commercial experience, business acumen and deep interest in arts and culture to us as both Chair and Consultant to the company, working closely with our Board and Executive team.

His departure this month marks the end of a very long and successful collaborative partnership between David and our Chief Executive, Mary-Alice Stack, which goes back way beyond the launch of Creative United as an independent Community Interest Company in spring 2013.

As Mary-Alice recalls:

“David and I were first introduced around 18 years ago, when I was working as Development Manager for the Own Art scheme at Arts Council England. He immediately saw the potential for growth and impact that existed within this innovative programme which was pioneering the use of retail finance (‘consumer credit’) as a mechanism stimulating the market for contemporary art and craft.

With a background in retail, it was clear that David was uniquely placed to support the development of this initiative and was subsequently invited to join the Board of ArtCo Trading Ltd, a wholly owned subsidiary company of Arts Council England and the entity through which the Own Art and Take it away schemes were being operated at the time.

The rest, as they say, is history. Working together, and with the support of many colleagues at Arts Council England, David and Mary-Alice were able to evolve a strategy that would enable these and other initiatives to achieve their full potential as a social enterprise.

Since then, David and Mary-Alice have worked in lockstep to see that vision realised through the continual growth and development of our consumer credit schemes (Own Art and Take it away) alongside a wide range of business support programme that have sought to achieve positive social and economic impacts across the UK’s arts, cultural and creative industries.

We all wish David well as he looks forward to new challenges and opportunities to deepen his love of archeaology as a Trustee of Cookham Abbey, alongside his continuing role in the creative sector as Chair of the Association of Illustrators.

Creative United will be launching its search for a new Chair in early November 2024. Prof. Nick Henry will be acting as Interim Chair until the appointment of a new Chair is confirmed next Spring.

David’s farewell lunch