Robert Steven (photo by Nick Lachance)
Robert Steven is the new executive director of the Portrait Gallery of Canada.
Steven, who begins May 2, has spent more than a decade in leadership roles as CEO of the Art Gallery of Burlington in Ontario and as executive director and curator of the Art Gallery of Grande Prairie in Alberta.
Alberta Venture magazine named him as one of Alberta’s 50 “most influential” people” in 2013, and he received the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal in 2012. He is currently vice-president of Galeries Ontario/Ontario Galleries.
Lawson Hunter, the Portrait Gallery’s board chair, praised Steven’s community-building abilities, as well as his knowledge of museum practices.
“The board was impressed by his demonstrated ability to rally community support for cultural projects from the ground up, his insight in current museum issues and practices, and his leadership experience,” said Hunter. “We look forward to working with him as we move forward with our vision to build a physical presence in the nation’s capital.”
Joanne Charette served as interim director while the gallery developed an online presence.
Steven said helping lead the development of an ambitious new museum at a time of significant cultural change is “a dream come true.”
“It is the opportunity of a lifetime for anyone who believes in the impact that the experience of museums and of works of art can have on the lives of individuals and of communities.”
The gallery also announced that Ann Thomas, former curator of photographs at the National Gallery of Canada, will organize its fall online exhibition, Portrait of the Artist as Artist, a series of still and moving images by Max Dean, winner of a 2014 Governor General's Award in Visual and Media Arts.
Source: Portrait Gallery of Canada