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.

SONIA MORAN

arts engagement coordinator

Sonia is most often to be found in the Gallery helping in its day to day running, assisting customers and making it all look beautiful. She’s a whizz at community engagement workshops and is keen to further develop our arts engagement programme. Sonia has recently graduated from the University of Leeds with an M.A. in Fine Art. Her artistic practice is a melting pot of poetry, song, performance, costume, textiles, and moving image informed by the ritualistic nature of Witchcraft and the effect of transformation on materials. She’s a little obsessed with mushrooms too!

natalie kolowiecki

Arts events coordinator

Natalie is not only the linchpin organiser of our events and workshop programme, she assists in the day to day running of the Art Gallery as well as being our social media whizz and inhouse website consultant. Highly creative herself, she writes music for film and arts projects.

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 around the site within her studio in the Twisting or running a screen printing workshop in the Spinning Mill or with a stall at one of our fairs… she keeps herself busy!

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!).