Kathy Halbreich ( ; born 1949) is an American

art curator A curator (from , meaning 'to take care') is a manager or overseer. When working with cultural organizations, a curator is typically a "collections curator" or an "exhibitions curator", and has multifaceted tasks dependent on the particular ins ...

and museum director.

Early life and education

Halbreich was born to Betty Stoll and Sonny Halbreich in 1949. She earned her BA from

Bennington College Bennington College is a private liberal arts college in Bennington, Vermont, United States. Founded as a women’s college in 1932,

Career

Halbreich was director of the Albert and Vera List Visual Arts Center at

MIT The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Established in 1861, MIT has played a significant role in the development of many areas of modern technology and sc ...

, where she designed a new arts building with architect I.M. Pei. She was then the curator of contemporary art at the

Museum of Fine Arts, Boston The Museum of Fine Arts (often abbreviated as MFA Boston or MFA) is an art museum in Boston, Massachusetts. It is the list of largest art museums, 20th-largest art museum in the world, measured by public gallery area. It contains 8,161 painting ...

. In 1991, Halbreich was hired as director of the

Walker Art Center The Walker Art Center is a multidisciplinary contemporary art center in the Lowry Hill, Minneapolis, Lowry Hill neighborhood of Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States. The Walker is one of the most-visited modern and contemporary art museums in ...

. Under her leadership, the museum broadened its reputation for developing emerging talent, hosting avant-garde performances and exhibitions. She oversaw a $73.8 million expansion at the Walker and announced her retirement in 2007. She was hired as an associate director of the

Museum of Modern Art The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) is an art museum located in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, on 53rd Street (Manhattan), 53rd Street between Fifth Avenue, Fifth and Sixth Avenues. MoMA's collection spans the late 19th century to the present, a ...

in 2008. At MoMA, Halbreich curated a 2014 retrospective of German artist Sigmar Polke and a 2018

Bruce Nauman Bruce Nauman (born December 6, 1941) is an American artist. His practice spans a broad range of media including sculpture, photography, neon, video, drawing, printmaking, and performance. Nauman lives near Galisteo, New Mexico. Life and work ...

exhibition. In September, 2017 Halbreich was appointed director of the

Robert Rauschenberg Milton Ernest "Robert" or "Bob" Rauschenberg (October 22, 1925 – May 12, 2008) was an American painter and graphic artist whose early works anticipated the Pop art movement. Rauschenberg is well known for his Combine painting, Combines (1954� ...

Foundation.

Other activities

Halbreich was a member of the juries that selected Kerstin Brätsch for the Edvard Munch Art Award (2017) and

Doris Salcedo Doris Salcedo (born 1958) is a Colombian-born visual artist and sculpture, sculptor."Doris Salcedo"
Art 21 ...

for the Nomura Art Award (2019). She has also served on the selection committee that chose the artist exhibiting at the American pavilion at the

Venice Biennale The Venice Biennale ( ; ) is an international cultural exhibition hosted annually in Venice, Italy. There are two main components of the festival, known as the Art Biennale () and the Venice Biennale of Architecture, Architecture Biennale (), ...

.Carol Vogel (3 August 2004)
American Art Is Adrift For Biennale In Venice
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New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

''.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Halbreich, Kathy 1949 births Living people American art curators American women curators American people of German-Jewish descent Bennington College alumni People associated with the Museum of Modern Art (New York City)