The British Museum
Lead Exhibition Designer
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Lead 3D Designer
Full-time
Hybrid at least 3 days per week on-site in Bloomsbury, London
Permanent
£51,623 per annum
Application deadline: 23:59 on 11 October 2026
Portfolio
Please provide a portfolio that includes a well-curated selection of relevant work, clearly showing how your skills and experience match the requirements of the role. Applications without a portfolio cannot be considered.
About the Role
This is an exceptional opportunity to shape some of the most ambitious cultural and exhibition projects in the world. As Lead 3D Designer, you will play a central role within the Museum’s Design and Interpretation team, leading the creative and technical delivery of narrative-driven exhibitions, gallery projects and public space interventions that bring extraordinary objects and stories to life.
The role offers the chance to contribute to a significant period of transformation as the British Museum embarks on the redevelopment of its Bloomsbury site. Alongside leading major projects, you will help shape our new studio’s standards, champion sustainable design approaches and support the continued evolution of an in-house design practice that has influenced the museum sector for more than six decades.
About You
You are an experienced and highly creative exhibition designer, architect or spatial designer with a compelling portfolio that demonstrates your ability to transform complex ideas into engaging, narrative-driven visitor experiences. You bring significant experience leading high-profile projects from concept through to completion, combining creative excellence with technical rigour and a deep understanding of how people experience space. Your work shows strong design judgement, confident stakeholder engagement and a commitment to delivering high-quality outcomes on time and within budget.
You are a hands-on, collaborative and influential designer who enjoys mentoring others and contributing to a positive studio culture. You thrive in multi-project environments, and you lead projects with curiosity, openness and collaborative energy. With advanced CAD expertise, strong technical knowledge and a commitment to sustainable design, you are comfortable leading multidisciplinary teams, challenging briefs constructively and translating curatorial ambition into memorable and meaningful experiences.
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Key Areas of Responsibility
- Lead the design and delivery of exhibitions, galleries and public space projects from concept to completion.
- Create engaging spatial experiences that bring complex stories and collections to life.
- Direct project teams, consultants and contractors to deliver high-quality outcomes on time and within budget.
- Produce and oversee high quality design documentation including illustrations, development drawings, technical drawings and project specifications.
- Champion sustainable design practices and contribute to studio standards and ways of working.
- Mentor junior designers and help foster an ambitious, collaborative studio culture.
The Masterplan
The British Museum is undertaking its biggest transformation since its founding nearly 300 years ago. This physical and intellectual transformation includes large scale building and gallery transformation, new ways of connecting with audiences and different ways of working. As we look towards this exciting future, we remain guided by the words of our founder Hans Sloane - who dreamed of a museum connecting all arts and sciences, which would be accessible to everyone, everywhere.
Benefits
At the British Museum, we believe our people are at the heart of everything we do and have designed a benefits package that goes beyond the ordinary. Our full list of benefits can be found here, but we’ve outlined some highlights below:
- Free exhibition entry for you and guests, exclusive private views, ICOM and reciprocal museum access.
- Civil Service Pension Scheme defined benefit with 28.97% employer contribution.
- 25 days’ annual leave plus bank holidays and 2.5 privilege days (and +5 days after 10 years).
- Social and wellbeing perks including Staff parties, social clubs, CSSC sports and leisure, and support from the Civil Service Retirement Fellowship.
- Learning and development through courses, mentoring and Athena as well as support for professional qualifications.
- Employee Assistance Programme available 24/7 for counselling, wellbeing support and more.
- Enhanced parental leave including maternity, paternity, adoption and shared parental leave.
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Our Values
Our values drive everything we do, from how we handle our objects to how we work in our team to fostering a culture where everyone feels heard and empowered:
- Care Deeply
- Embrace the Unknown
- Spark Curiosity
- Value Many Voices
These are a core part of how we recruit. Throughout the application, interview and selection process, we look for examples of how candidates demonstrate these behaviours in their own work and experiences. We encourage you to familiarise yourself with our values and reflect them in your application.
Additional Details
If you have any additional needs that we should be aware of to support you with your application, please provide details to bmrecruit@britishmuseum.org.
Right to Work: The British Museum holds a Skilled Worker sponsor licence. Applicants are responsible for determining whether the advertised salary and role meet current UKVI sponsorship requirements and for ensuring they have, or can obtain, the appropriate right to work in the UK. The Museum cannot provide immigration advice, and eligibility should be checked before submitting an application.
The Museum also adheres to the HMG Baseline Personnel Security Standard (BPSS) for pre-employment screening of Civil Servants.
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