Team

Small, friendly, focused, passionate about the mills and its heritage, we talk lots, work hard, make things happen, and eat lunch together regularly.

With a complementary skill set that ranges from project management, accounting, marketing, weaving, cooking and D.I.Y., we collaborate daily to create spaces for business, culture and community.

WILLIAM GAUNT

Joint Managing Director

As likely to be found in overalls tinkering with a loom, identifying Victorian underground pipes or fiddling with bits of old machinery as in his office. William keeps an eye on the numbers as well as managing all things mills related with John.

JOHN GAUNT

Joint Managing Director

Often found up a ladder with bunting or heaving A Boards round the mills at events, John oversees signs and technology as well as running the mills generally with William. A firm believer in the value of being nice in business, John is committed to supporting the mills’ business community. Not to be left alone near a biscuit jar.

fiona gell

COMMUNICATIONS DIRECTOR

Fiona’s challenge is to market the Mills in all its glory ensuring that the Gallery, Museum and Archive and Creative Spaces and their tenants all get an equal voice. That’s no mean feat! Fiona has a background in marketing, events, heritage, archives and libraries. Her passion is supporting literature in Leeds and she is never happier than when she is talking to writers or helping them organise a book launch. She is a founder partner of Leeds Lit Fest.

ANNA TURZYNSKI

ARTS Director

Recognisable by her signature fringe, Anna is the Arts Director at the Mills. Her job is to oversee the Gallery, shop, workshops, studios and events that take place on site. She mostly spends her time chatting with artists and seeking out new cultural experiences. Anna is passionate about improving access to the arts and loves seeing it pop-up in unconventional spaces.

AMY SHALVEY

arts PROGRAMMING ASSISTANT

The newest member of the team, Amy is our resident art historian hailing from Co. Kerry in Ireland (like the butter).

Deeply passionate about all things history and socially engaged art practices, Amy’s role with us is to find new and innovative ways to fill the Mills spaces with interesting people who are passionate about what they do.

natalie kolowiecki

exhibitions & Digital media coordinator

Natalie supports Anna with the Gallery’s exhibition programme, creating everything from exhibition guides, to web pages, to photography for our social media and press.

Outside of work, she is a core member of Flock Foto – a Yorkshire based group for female and non-binary photographers.

MILLIE ROTHERA

RETAIL AND WORKSHOP COORDINATOR

You can find Millie within our Gallery shop, curating stock, and sourcing new makers to support and sell. Millie believes in supporting our local craftspeople wherever possible so also facilitates our workshop programme.

With a textile practice of her own, you might find Millie running a screen printing workshop in the Finishing Room or in the Gallery sporting one of her handmade outfits.

KAT ARNOLD

GALLERY SUPPORT LEAD

Kat supports the running of the Arts Programme during weekends and our major site-wide events, managing our brilliant team of Mill Hosts and casual staff. She is also a key member of our technician team – installing vinyl, artwork and interpretation during exhibition changeovers.

Kat is also the one-woman creative force behind Katsillustration – a small business aiming to bring a splash of colour, fun, and personality to everyday life.

RACHEL MOABY

heritage director

Never happier than when surrounded by mill artefacts, Rachel looks after all things heritage from our Museum & Archive to our wonderful volunteers. Her role is dedicated to safeguarding this unique collection still in the buildings where it was produced and sharing its stories often using the latest technologies from 360 photography to 3D printing. She is convinced there is a subject, story, or object that everyone can connect with in the collection whatever their interests.

alison mcmaster

heritage officer

Lover of the old and the new, you will usually find Alison using 21st century tech to bring the history of the Mills to life online. She’s happy behind a camera or some fancy 3D software but loves the history of the site, the textiles and the artefacts too and doesn’t mind dusting objects down to capture their best side. If her eyes glaze over chances are she’s running low on coffee (step away from the decaf!).

SARAH GAUNT

administration & THREADS festival DIRECTOR

Sarah deals with much of the Mills’ day to day administration in the Estate Office. With a strong passion for the Mill’s textile history and contemporary textile practices, she is also the director of our annual Threads Textile Festival, feeding into the programme and helping the Festival to reach new audiences from across Yorkshire and beyond.