Whitney Museum Chief Curator Kim Conaty Named Director of Dartmouth’s Hood Museum
Kim Conaty, the Nancy and Steven Crown Family Chief Curator at the Whitney Museum of American Art, has been appointed as the eighth director of Dartmouth College’s Hood Museum of Art, effective October 27, according to announcements by Provost Santiago Schnell.
Transition Dynamics at the Hood Museum of Art
Conaty succeeds John Stomberg, who stepped down this month after leading the institution for a decade. During his tenure, Stomberg oversaw a $50 million renovation and expansion project that doubled the museum footprint before reopening in 2019. Conaty steps into the role as the museum looks toward establishing its next strategic plan.
“The Hood Museum stands out as a place where discovery is prioritized and viewers of all backgrounds and levels of experience can find points of entry,” Conaty stated. “The museum is at an exciting juncture, with a still-new building, tremendous collections, and a great team at the heart of Dartmouth’s Arts District.”
According to Provost Santiago Schnell, Conaty is an exceptional leader who understands that the arts are central to university life and the mission of forming whole persons. Colleen Boggs, Dartmouth’s associate dean for the arts and humanities and search committee chair, noted that Conaty stood out in a competitive search facilitated by the firm Isaacson, Miller as a forward-thinking candidate.
Curatorial Background and Institutional Impact
Conaty brings experience at the Whitney Museum to her new director post, alongside prior curatorial roles at the Museum of Modern Art and the Rose Art Museum at Brandeis University. At the Whitney, she initially joined in 2017 as the curator of drawings and prints before being elevated to chief curator in 2024. Her exhibition history includes organizing surveys for artists such as Edward Hopper, Mary Corse, Ruth Asawa, Fred Eversley, Tony Lewis, and Sharon Lockhart.
At Dartmouth, the Hood Museum anchors an expansive Arts District that includes the recently expanded Hopkins Center for the Arts, the Black Family Visual Arts Center, the Literary Arts Bridge, and The Warehouse sonic arts laboratory. Conaty’s background in modern and contemporary art scholarship will guide the institution as it manages a collection exceeding 74,000 objects spanning diverse global traditions, originally opened in 1985.
“I am a firm believer that academic museums have the power to create transformative experiences,” Conaty noted in the official announcement.
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