Dr Kitty Corbet Milward is an independent art historian and arts professional, specialising in Nordic visual culture and dress. She has spent over twenty years working in the sector, living in different parts of the UK and Europe. Her doctorate (History of Art, The University of Edinburgh, 2019) addressed the representation of Norwegian women, dress and textiles in visual culture around the year 1900.

An interest in the arts started with drawing and ballet, where she trained at the Royal Academy of Dance in London. After embarking on a career at Condé Nast Magazines (Vogue; House and Garden), she completed a Master’s Degree in Museum Studies at University College London. This led to employment at London’s China Now Festival, the British Museum, the Victoria and Albert Museum, the Royal Academy of Arts and the Venice Biennale, where she worked with the Office for Contemporary Art Norway (OCA) on the Nordic Pavilion with the artist Camille Norment.

From 2016 Kitty spent almost a decade with the British Council where she covered Nordic-British Cultural Relations, advocating the use of soft power as opposed to hard power, diplomacy, arts, and education to bring nations closer together. Here, she advised the FCDO and the British Embassies in Norway, Sweden, Denmark and Finland, artists, arts organisations, students and academics on using culture to strengthen connections, trust and understanding between people in the UK and the Nordic countries.

Significant events and projects have included: Nordic Matters at the Southbank Centre, Capitals of Culture in Aarhus and Bodø, the Gothenburg Book Fair, Grayson Perry at the National Museum of Norway, Almedalen Week in Sweden, 3 Days of Design in Copenhagen, Nordic delegations visiting the Edinburgh Festivals, Future Library in Oslo and artist residencies for Helsinki Design Week.

Kitty is now working as an independent specialist with a focus on the Nordic countries. She fits  work and research around a young family and an often itinerant lifestyle as a military spouse which involves frequent relocation, adapting to new cultures and diverse environments. 

Her current project looks at Scottish and Norwegian dress and textiles, unearthing the similarities and differences between the design, use, understanding and power of traditional and national clothing. This is in collaboration with the Norwegian Institute for Bunad and Folk Costume, with support from the National Museum of Scotland, Customs Lane and the Edinburgh Kiltmakers Academy. It is funded by Arts and Culture Norway, the governmental operator for the implementation of Norwegian cultural policy.