Lindsay Gerard Sharp is a museologist who lives near

Wollongong Wollongong ( ; Dharawal: ''Woolyungah'') is a city located in the Illawarra region of New South Wales, Australia. The name is believed to originate from the Dharawal language, meaning either 'five islands/clouds', 'ground near water' or 'sound ...

/ Gerringong in the coastal hinterland of

New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...

in Australia. He works as a museum consultant and writer. Born in Britain and raised in Australia, Sharp earned his doctorate in the history of ideas (science/natural philosophy) in 1976, receiving the Clifford Norton Research Fellowship in the History of Science from

Queen's College, Oxford The Queen's College is a constituent college of the University of Oxford, England. The college was founded in 1341 by Robert de Eglesfield in honour of Philippa of Hainault, queen of England. It is distinguished by its predominantly neoclassi ...

. He started his museological career at the

Science Museum A science museum is a museum devoted primarily to science. Older science museums tended to concentrate on static displays of objects related to natural history, paleontology, geology, Industry (manufacturing), industry and Outline of industrial ...

in London the same year he received his PhD, and for the next three decades worked all over the world. In Australia, Sharp led the team responsible for creating Sydney's

Powerhouse Museum The Powerhouse Museum, formerly known as the Museum of Applied Arts & Sciences (MAAS), is a collection of 4 museums in Sydney, owned by the Government of New South Wales. Powerhouse is a contemporary museum of applied arts and sciences, explori ...

and was its founding director Sharp also served as Director, Entertainment and Leisure, for Merlin International Properties in Australia and the UK. He was CEO/executive consultant to the Earth Exchange – a regenerated tourist, environmental and educational facility at the Rocks in Sydney, and deputy director/senior museum consultant to the Milken Family Foundation in

Santa Monica, California Santa Monica (; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Santa Mónica'') is a city in Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County, situated along Santa Monica Bay on California's South Coast (California), South Coast. Santa Monica's 2020 United Sta ...

. He was president and CEO of the

Royal Ontario Museum The Royal Ontario Museum (ROM) is a museum of art, world culture and natural history in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is one of the largest museums in North America and the largest in Canada. It attracts more than one million visitors every year ...

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

, Canada from 1997 to 2000 – Canada's equivalent of America's Smithsonian. In 2000 Sharp was appointed as director of London's National Museum of Science and Industry – now known as the

Science Museum Group The Science Museum Group (SMG) consists of five British museums: * The Science Museum in South Kensington, London * The Science and Industry Museum in Manchester * The National Railway Museum in York * The Locomotion Museum (formerly the Na ...

– a family of museums that include the

National Railway Museum The National Railway Museum (NRM) is a museum in York, England, forming part of the Science Museum Group. The museum tells the story of rail transport in Britain and its impact on society. It is the home of the national collection of historical ...

, the

, and the National Museum of Photography, Film and Television (now National Science and Media Museum), the Dana Research Centre and Library, the

National Railway Museum Shildon Locomotion, previously known as Locomotion the National Railway Museum at Shildon, is a railway museum in Shildon, County Durham, England. The museum was renamed in 2017 when it became part of the Science Museum Group. Overview The museum was ...

, and the

National Collections Centre The Science and Innovation Park is a research and cultural site near Swindon, England. Part of the Science Museum Group, the Park hosts a range of research and development activity, filming and photography projects, storage for culture sector ...

Wiltshire Wiltshire (; abbreviated to Wilts) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It borders Gloucestershire to the north, Oxfordshire to the north-east, Berkshire to the east, Hampshire to the south-east, Dorset to the south, and Somerset to ...

, UK. He was founding director of the Dana Centre, and helped to re-plan the entire Science Museum Group, in all aspects, developing new strategic plans for the large and complex sites at each museum and enhancing the SMG's global electronic and educational engagement and reach. In June 2005 he was awarded the 2005 Public Promotion of Engineering Medal by the

Royal Academy of Engineering The Royal Academy of Engineering (RAEng) is the United Kingdom's national academy of engineering. The Academy was founded in June 1976 as the Fellowship of Engineering with support from Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, who became the first senio ...

. Sharp's concern to draw more of the Science Museum's collection to the attention the public was sustained.Mark Henderson
Science Museum II thinks big to liberate locked-away gems
''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British Newspaper#Daily, daily Newspaper#National, national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its modern name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its si ...

'', 16 June 2007. Since 2006 Sharp has consulted in Asia, Australasia, and the US, assisting cultural organisations in developing and engaging with broader audiences and becoming more sustainable.

References

http://www.cbc.ca/fifth/episodes/from-the-archives/ {{DEFAULTSORT:Sharp, Lindsay Year of birth missing (living people) Living people British curators Royal Ontario Museum Directors of museums in Australia Directors of museums in Canada Directors of the Science Museum, London