Louise Smith, Founder and Managing Director
Louise established Open Artspace in 2022, as a CIC, after previously founding a large charitable open-access studio for ceramics, print and jewellery in Abbeymount Edinburgh, now managed by Edinburgh Design School and Out of the Blue.
Louise studied Ceramics, Metal and Print at degree. After running the Edinburgh Studio for 6 years she moved to London where she worked for 3 years in Arts and Heritage project-managment. Louise manages a small team of staff at Open Artspace and teaches courses in surface decoration.
Chris Reynolds, Advisory Board Member
Chris working in education and has a background in theatre arts, photography and games.
Chris has been a member of Open Artspace since September 2023, he has been enthusiastic about clay since friend introduced Chris to pottery in her home studio at the bottom of the garden.
‘I love the opportunity clay provides for expression and mastery. There are so many things to explore and then display. I like to make striking, one-off pieces, I’m very fond of a vase!’