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June 12, 2025

Curatorial Shakeup: New Head of Contemporary Art Appointed

The Metropolitan Museum of Art has announced a major, strategic leadership change with the appointment of a highly respected, visionary international curator as the new head of the Department of Modern and Contemporary Art. This critical hire signals a dynamic shift in The Met's approach to the art of the 21st century, promising to invigorate the museum's contemporary programming with a bold, global perspective.

The newly appointed department head arrives from a leading European contemporary art institution, bringing a reputation for organizing deeply provocative, cross-disciplinary exhibitions. Their past curatorial work has consistently challenged traditional narratives, integrating performance art, digital media, and large-scale, immersive installations alongside traditional painting and sculpture.

A central pillar of the new curator's mandate is to aggressively expand and diversify the museum's holdings of art from the Global South. The Met's leadership has committed a significant increase in the department's acquisition budget specifically to address historical gaps in the collection, focusing on acquiring major works by artists from Africa, Latin America, and Southeast Asia.

The curator's inaugural project at The Met will be a massive, museum-wide exhibition exploring the intersection of contemporary art, advanced technology, and global climate change. Slated for next year, the exhibition will feature newly commissioned, site-specific works that will be installed not just in the modern galleries, but interspersed throughout the museum's historical collections, creating startling and thought-provoking dialogues across time.

This appointment has generated significant excitement within the international art community. Critics and artists alike view this curatorial shakeup as a clear indication that The Met is actively working to dismantle Eurocentric biases and is fully committed to presenting a truly inclusive, fiercely relevant representation of the contemporary art world.

Press Contact

For more information or to request high-resolution images, please contact the Communications Department at communications@metmuseum.org.