Hot 50: TIM MOLLOY

Major projects take some time in the hatching in the world of museums and can therefore easily test the patience of creative folk.

But Tim Molloy, head of creative direction at the Science Museum, persevered with a plan conceived over a period of seven years for the Museum of the Future, which was launched last year to coincide with the London museum’s centenary.

Under the plan, conceptualised by architect Wilkinson Eyre and exhibition mdesign specialist Casson Mann, the building will be radically restructured and extended upwards to create a rooftop Sky Space gallery to explore the science of cosmology. Two new permanent spaces will constitute the Treasury galleries.

Molloy’s role in championing these changes is exemplary, but during his 15 years at the museum he has achieved far more through his vision and his skills in commissioning.

The Materials gallery, the £55m Wellcome Wing completed in 2000 by architect MacCormac Jamieson Prichard, the £9m Dana Centre for adult learning with design by Pentagram partner Harry Pearce and words by Oliver Wingate, and Launchpad, with input from Andy Feast, Pentagram and museum staff, all bear his stamp.

Molloy is not planning to leave the museum, but if he were to quit tomorrow his legacy would be immense.

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