NOMA APPOINTS ANNE COLLINS SMITH AS CHIEF CURATOR

The New Orleans Museum of Modern Art is the city's oldest fine arts institution, opening in 1911 with only nine works of art. Today, it boasts nearly 50,000 artworks with a collection spanning 5,000 years, and Anne Collins Smith is on board to lead exhibition initiatives along with the curatorial and collections staff.

Prior to NOMA, Smith was the director of the Xavier University of Louisiana Art Gallery. She has held positions including Curator of Collections at the Spelman College Museum of Fine Art in Atlanta, Andrew W. Mellon Curatorial Fellow at the Davis Museum and Cultural Center at Wellesley College, and Romare Bearden Fellow at the Saint Louis Art Museum. In 2021, Smith was selected for a prestigious Center for Curatorial Leadership fellowship. Smith holds an MA in visual arts administration from New York University and a BA from Spelman College.

Photo of Anne Collins Smith by Taylor Hunter. Courtesy of the New Orleans Museum of Art.

“This appointment is the opportunity of a lifetime and a testimony to perseverance and my dedication to curatorial practice. I look forward to advancing NOMA’s mission and shepherding exemplary art experiences with our dynamic team of curators,” said Smith. “The art historian Mary Ann Calo speaks of how curators serve as interlocutors between art, artists, and the community. This principle continues to guide me through my career.”

In this important role, Smith will use her interests, including curatorial practices across the African diaspora, to help shape the museum's presentations of modern and contemporary art, adding significant expertise in African American art and bringing her perspective as a native New Orleanian to the organization.

Congratulations, Anne! You can learn more about her via the NOMA website.