{"id":3603,"date":"2025-04-11T01:32:49","date_gmt":"2025-04-11T01:32:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nationalgunowner.org\/index.php\/2025\/04\/11\/the-gccs-inaugural-chair-momas-new-director-and-more\/"},"modified":"2025-04-11T01:33:00","modified_gmt":"2025-04-11T01:33:00","slug":"the-gccs-inaugural-chair-momas-new-director-and-more","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nationalgunowner.org\/index.php\/2025\/04\/11\/the-gccs-inaugural-chair-momas-new-director-and-more\/","title":{"rendered":"The GCC\u2019s Inaugural Chair, MoMA\u2019s New Director and More"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Christophe Cherix, Frances Morris and Agust\u00edn Arteaga are starting new chapters. Angela Pham\/Benjamin Lozovsky\/Kaitlin Saragusa\/BFA.com<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The only constant in the art world is change, whether it\u2019s artwork changing hands, pieces breaking auction records or people moving from one institution to another. What follows are some of the most notable role changes recently announced across the art sphere.<\/p>\n

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Agust\u00edn Arteaga named new director and CEO of Crocker Art Museum<\/h3>\n
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Agust\u00edn Arteaga (center) with Leigh Anne Clark and Bela Cooley. Kaitlin Saragusa\/BFA.com<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

When Crocker Art Museum in Sacramento\u2014the oldest art museum in the western U.S.\u2014announced that director and CEO Lial A. Jones<\/a> would be retiring after twenty-five years with the institution, it wasn\u2019t immediately clear who her successor would be. Now we know Agust\u00edn Arteaga will step into the role on July 1, 2025. Garry Maisel<\/a>, president of the Crocker Art Museum Association Board of Directors, told the press that Arteaga\u2019s \u201cimpressive record of innovation, inclusivity, and institutional excellence makes him the ideal person to guide the Crocker forward.\u201d<\/p>\n

Arteaga arrives from the Dallas Museum of Art, where he has served as director since 2016, during which time he ushered in a period of expanded collections, broader engagement and sharper equity initiatives. Before that, he led the Museo Nacional de Arte in Mexico City and the Museo de Arte de Ponce in Puerto Rico and was the founding director of MALBA in Buenos Aires. His influence stretches beyond museum walls\u2014he sits on the board of the Andy Warhol Foundation and is an active member of the Association of Art Museum Directors and the TEFAF\u2019s global advisory board.<\/p>\n

Former Tate Modern chief Frances Morris appointed inaugural board chair of the Gallery Climate Coalition<\/h3>\n
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Frances Morris (l.) with dealer Dominique L\u00e9vy and producer Dorothy Berwin. Benjamin Lozovsky\/BFA.com<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

From 2016 to 2023, Frances Morris<\/a> served as director of Tate Modern; now, she\u2019s bringing her skills to the Gallery Climate Coalition as chair of the organization\u2019s Board of Trustees. She steps into the role at a \u201cpivotal juncture\u201d in the GCC\u2019s plans to reduce sector-wide CO\u2082 emissions by 50 percent by 2030. \u201cFrances\u2019s bold leadership and impressive track record of driving tangible climate action within a major institution, along with her unwavering commitment to systemic change, make her the ideal person to help lead GCC forward at this critical juncture,\u201d Heath Lowndes<\/a>, GCC co-founder and director, said in a statement.<\/p>\n

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Morris, a respected museum curator, art historian and writer, has a track record of promoting environmental responsibility in institutional practice. In addition to helping establish Tate Modern as one of the world\u2019s leading art institutions, she also played a key role in Tate\u2019s 2019 Climate Emergency declaration. She introduced a 50 percent carbon reduction target for the institution, plus a train-first travel policy, green energy initiatives and sustainable food sourcing for Tate\u2019s restaurants.<\/p>\n

MoMA named Christophe Cherix as Glenn D. Lowry\u2019s successor<\/h3>\n
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Christophe Cherix (l.) with artist Ed Ruscha. Angela Pham\/BFA.com<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Swiss-born curator Christophe Cherix will take the reins at the Museum of Modern Art<\/a> this September, becoming the first new director in nearly three decades following Lowry\u2019s transformative tenure. He was unanimously confirmed by the museum\u2019s board after a focused six-month international search. Lowry, MoMA\u2019s longest-serving director, has worked closely with Cherix for more than fifteen years and welcomed the news. \u201cChristophe is a gifted and talented curator, and I look forward to seeing the museum evolve and thrive under his able direction,\u201d he told the press.<\/p>\n

Cherix\u2019s career includes stints as curator of prints at the Mus\u00e9e d\u2019Art et Histoire in Geneva and a residency at LACMA while a Fellow at the Center for Curatorial Leadership. He joined MoMA in 2007 and, in 2013, was named Robert Lehman Foundation Chief Curator of Drawings and Prints following a departmental reorganization that combined the Department of Prints and Illustrated Books (of which he had been chief curator since 2010). He played a central role in integrating and expanding the collection.<\/p>\n

PS21 \u2028announced Vallejo Gantner as artistic and executive director<\/h3>\n
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Vallejo Gantner (right) with artist Lauren Slone. Deont\u00e9 Lee\/BFA.com<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

As artistic and executive director of the contemporary arts center located in Chatham, New York, within the Hudson Valley region, Vallejo Gantner<\/a> will oversee the continued expansion of the organization\u2019s interdisciplinary programming across its 100-acre campus. He is, according to PS21, already at work deepening ties with arts and cultural partners regionally, nationally and globally. \u201cVallejo brings a vision that goes far beyond enriching our stage,\u201d said Alice Kocis<\/a> and Louis Hedgecock<\/a>, co-presidents of PS21\u2019s board of directors. \u201cHis experience in contemporary performing arts, paired with his passion for strengthening relationships and pushing the boundaries of our institution\u2019s role within greater Columbia County, promises a future where art and community grow together.\u201d<\/p>\n

Gantner arrives at PS21 with more than 25 years of leadership experience at arts organizations in the U.S., Australia and Ireland. From 2021 to 2023, he served as director of creative partnerships at ONX Studio, a hybrid production and exhibition space in New York for immersive and XR artists. Before that, he was the artistic executive director of the Onassis Foundation USA from 2019 to 2021, overseeing programming between Athens, New York and Los Angeles. As a curatorial advisor for BAM, Gantner supported a diverse roster of experimental artists and performance program ideas. He currently sits on the boards of the VII Photo Agency, In Between Time in Bristol, The Chocolate Factory Theater in New York and several philanthropic institutions in Australia.<\/p>\n

James Fuentes appointed Katrin Lewinsky as partner<\/h3>\n

James Fuentes recently announced the appointment of Katrin Lewinsky<\/a> as partner, which is a heck of a way to celebrate the fact that she\u2019s been with the gallery for a decade. Lewinsky was named senior director in 2018 after three years as director, during which she led strategic growth across the gallery\u2019s program and cultivated enduring relationships with institutions, curators and collectors around the world. Her contributions have included securing major museum acquisitions in the U.S. and abroad and playing a central role in the gallery\u2019s artist representation, exhibitions, publications and art fair participation.<\/p>\n

Before joining James Fuentes, Lewinsky served as a director at Gladstone Gallery in New York. Earlier, in Johannesburg, she was director at Goodman Gallery, cofounder of the Co-Op gallery and managing director of the country\u2019s first biennial art and architecture festival in 2010. She began her institutional career in Berlin as director at the KW Institute for Contemporary Art, which at the time was an affiliate of MoMA PS1.<\/p>\n

Vancouver Art Gallery CEO and executive director Anthony Kiendl stepped down<\/h3>\n

Late last month, the Vancouver Art Gallery confirmed that Anthony Kiendl<\/a> has stepped down as CEO and executive director, ending a tenure just shy of five years. During his time at the helm of the institution, Kiendl oversaw a transformation of the gallery\u2019s programming and significantly expanded its donor base, membership and attendance. He also led the institution through a turbulent chapter in its planned relocation to a new downtown building\u2014a project ultimately shelved after the budget surged by 50 percent to $600 million. \u201cHe had personal and professional directions he wanted to pursue, and it seemed to us to be an opportune moment to go in different directions,\u201d said Jon Stovel<\/a>, chairman of the gallery\u2019s board of trustees, in a statement to the Vancouver Sun<\/a>. \u201cWe\u2019re not sharing specifics of the internal considerations that were discussed, but it just seemed like the right time for both parties.\u201d<\/p>\n

Originally from Winnipeg, Kiendl served as executive director of Plug In Institute of Contemporary Art from 2006 to 2013, where he led a capital development campaign that culminated in the 2010 opening of a new facility shared with the University of Winnipeg. Prior to that, he held leadership positions as executive director and CEO of the Mackenzie Art Gallery in Regina, director of visual arts at The Banff Centre and curator of the Dunlop Art Gallery. In 2011, he was appointed curator of \u201cContour: Biennale of the Moving Image\u201d in Mechelen, Belgium.<\/p>\n

Denise Markonish joins the Madison Square Park Conservancy as chief curator<\/h3>\n
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Denise Markonish (center) with dealer Jack Shainman and artist Nick Cave. Sam Deitch\/BFAnyc.com<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Denise Markonish<\/a> has been appointed chief curator of Madison Square Park Conservancy\u2019s public art program, succeeding Brooke Kamin Rapaport<\/a>. Markonish joins the MSPC after an eighteen-year tenure at MASS MoCA, where she most recently served as the institution\u2019s first-ever chief curator. \u201cAs a seasoned curator, she understands artists\u2019 needs and how to integrate their visions into our park and neighborhood,\u201d said executive director Holly Leicht<\/a> in a statement. \u201cWe believe she is the perfect choice for this next chapter in the program\u2019s history.\u201d<\/p>\n

Markonish already shares a history with the Conservancy, having worked with the organization to bring Martin Puryear<\/a>\u2019s Big Bling<\/i> to North Adams following its original installation in the park in 2016. Since joining MASS MoCA in 2007, Markonish has curated major exhibitions with artists including Nick Cave<\/a>, Lily Cox-Richard<\/a>, Teresita Fern\u00e1ndez, Jeffrey Gibson<\/a>, Joseph Grigely<\/a>, Trenton Doyle Hancock<\/a>, Amy Hauft<\/a>, Glenn Kaino<\/a>, Marc Swanson<\/a>, Nari Ward<\/a> and Amy Yoes<\/a>. Before her time in North Adams, she served as curator at Artspace in New Haven and at the Fuller Museum of Art (now known as Fuller Craft Museum) in Brockton. Her upcoming exhibition, \u201cVincent Valdez<\/a>: Just a Dream\u2026,\u201d a 25-year survey co-organized with the Contemporary Arts Museum Houston, is set to open at MASS MoCA on May 24, 2025.<\/p>\n

Emanuela Tarizzo named director of Frieze Masters<\/h3>\n

This month, Emanuela Tarizzo<\/a> stepped into her new role as director of Frieze Masters in London. She succeeds Nathan Clements-Gillespie<\/a>, who has led the fair since 2018. \u201cWe are delighted to welcome Emanuela,\u201d said Kristell Chad\u00e9, executive director of fairs at Frieze. \u201cHer extensive knowledge of the art market, combined with a rigorous approach to historical art, will further strengthen the fair\u2019s unique position as a bridge between past and present. Under her leadership, Frieze Masters will not only continue to be an essential platform for defining works of art history but also deepen relationships with leading museums and collectors whose insight and ambition shape the field.\u201d<\/p>\n

Tarizzo brings to Frieze Masters a broad international network built through years of collaboration with dealers, collectors, museums and scholars. Known for her research-driven curatorial approach and widely respected for her ability to foster meaningful relationships across the cultural sector and her commitment to scholarship and connoisseurship, she most recently worked as an independent art advisor and previously served as gallery director at Tomasso in London.<\/p>\n

Shawn Yuan joins the Norton Museum of Art as senior curator of Asian art<\/h3>\n

The Norton Museum of Art, Florida\u2019s largest art museum, welcomed Shawn Yuan<\/a> as senior curator of Asian art earlier this week (April 7). He succeeds Laurie Barnes<\/a>, who is retiring after nineteen years overseeing the museum\u2019s Asian holdings. Yuan will lead the development, growth and interpretation of the Asian Collection, which includes more than 700 works across a range of mediums, with a core focus on Chinese art. His arrival also signals the museum\u2019s expanded commitment to collecting from other Asian cultures, including Japan, Korea and India. \u201cWe are impressed by Shawn\u2019s enthusiasm for our collections and his passion for making these venerable works of art relatable to modern audiences,\u201d said Ghislain d\u2019Humi\u00e8res, director and CEO, in a statement. \u201cI look forward to working with him and collaborating on the development of innovative, original exhibition programming that expands the Norton\u2019s storied Chinese holdings and welcomes new audiences through the focused inclusion of work from diverse Asian cultures.\u201d<\/p>\n

Yuan comes to the Norton from the World Heritage Center in San Antonio and brings experience from prior roles at the San Antonio Museum of Art, the Oklahoma State University Museum of Art and the Crow Museum of Asian Art at the University of Texas, Dallas. He has curated a number of exhibitions, including \u201cSamurai Spirit: Swords, Accessories, and Paintings,\u201d \u201cCreative Splendor: Japanese Bamboo Baskets from the Thomas Collection,\u201d \u201cElegant Pursuits: The Arts of China\u2019s Educated Elite, 1400\u20131900\u201d and \u201cKorean Ceramics from the San Antonio Museum of Art Collection.\u201d<\/p>\n

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