Susanna is a curator and podcaster who has far-reaching knowledge of working with designers and artists on site-specific installations, exhibitions and commissions in Scotland and beyond. An energetic thinker and innovator, she is passionate about celebrating creative ambition and adventure.
Susanna has long had an interest in the arts. From her days writing reviews and arts listings for Al-Ahram Weekly, an English-language newspaper in Cairo in the early 1990s, to working for Scotland’s The List magazine, in the late 1990s, she has a passionate interest in celebrating creativity, curiosity and fresh ideas. In 2000, she founded doggerfisher (2000-2010) in Edinburgh, the celebrated contemporary gallery, where she championed the early careers of many now critically acclaimed artists. Other roles include director of Frith Street Gallery, London; guest curator at Jupiter Artland and guest curator for Craft Scotland’s presentation at Collect, Somerset House, London. More recently she was curator and creative producer of the touring exhibition Ash Rise and curator of Earth Matters at Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh.
In 2018 she launched Design Exhibition Scotland to celebrate contemporary design, materials and making. Projects include Design for Our Times at London Design Festival, 2021 and V&A Dundee in 2022, together with an ongoing project of commissioning drinking fountains. In 2019 Susanna worked with artist Tania Kovats on WELL, a tiled fountain which was later acquired by the UK Government Art Collection. In 2022 Dixon, a drinking fountain commissioned by DES and designed by Mirrl of Glasgow was installed outside South Ken tube as part of Brompton Design Week / London Design Festival. In 2022, a further iteration of WELL was installed at Edinburgh’s Fruitmarket and 2024 Dixon in greens and pink (inspired by the colour of rhubarb!) was permanently installed in the University of Dundee’s Botanic Garden.
Always exploring new ways to champion the energy and brilliance of artists and makers, in May 2025 Susanna launched DES Talks, a podcast celebrating creativity through conversations with artists, makers and designers from across Scotland. Take a listen!
Susanna is a trustee of the Andrew Raven Trust and the Hope Scott Trust. She was previously on the board of Collective Gallery, Edinburgh. She was recently one of the selectors for the Spirit of Spark commission celebrating the life of the writer, Muriel Spark with a monument in Edinburgh’s Princes Street Gardens. The selected artist is the Glasgow-based Jackie Donachie.
