After three decades of service, Glenn Lowry, the helmsman of New York's esteemed Museum of Modern Art, has announced his decision to depart.
The 69-year-old, who spearheaded significant growth and influence for the museum in American culture, declared to the New York Times that he'll step down from his position in September 2025.
He shared, "It's the ideal time to consider the museum's future and I simply thought, seize the day. Every goal I had set out for myself 30 years ago is either achieved or progressing in a fantastic manner." He mentioned he didn't want to linger past his prime.
The Times revealed that Lowry's current contract concludes in June, and the museum had been open to renewing it. MoMA didn't promptly reply to CNN's request for additional comments.
Lowry relocated to MoMA from Canada's Art Gallery of Ontario in 1995, becoming the sixth director in the museum's 95-year history. He led the institution during a merger with the P.S.1 Contemporary Art Center in Queens in 2000, and an expansive 2004 renovation project that amplified gallery space by 40%.
In addition to his fundraising and advocacy roles, Lowry also built a personal reputation. In 2019, he headed the museum through another expansion, using a $450-million facelift to increase gallery space by 30%.
MoMA welcomes 2.7 million visitors annually, making it the USA's third-most-visited art museum following the Metropolitan Museum of Art and Washington DC's National Gallery of Art.
The museum credits Lowry for hiking visitor numbers and augmenting the museum's endowment, a crucial income source. Also, he broadened MoMA's curatorial spectrum to feature performance art.
Through displays, commissions, and acquisitions, Lowry employed art to engage with pressing social issues. As CNN Style guest editor in 2016, he commissioned a series of articles centering around the theme of migration, emphasizing the influence of contemporary art in transforming the world.
Lowry's announcement followed a weekly interview with CNN's Richard Quest, in which Quest inquired about his preferred painting for retiring. Lowry humorously stated, "It's similar to choosing a favorite child—on Monday it's one, and on Tuesday it's another." He eventually picked Paul Cézanne’s “The Boy in the Red Vest,” praising it as a "striking portrait."
MoMA has yet to announce its strategy for choosing Lowry's successor, who'll inherit one of the art sector's most coveted positions. Additionally, no affirmations have been made regarding Lowry's other positions, including several board roles at institutions such as the Robert Rauschenberg Foundation and India's Kiran Nadar Museum of Art.
Lowry's departure from MoMA has sparked discussions about the museum's future style in the arts, as he was known for broadening its curatorial spectrum and engaging with social issues through art. During his tenure, he showed a commitment to contemporary art, even serving as CNN Style guest editor to commission articles on migration and its impact.
With Lowry's focus on modern and contemporary art, the museum's next director will have big shoes to fill in maintaining MoMA's reputation as a leader in the arts scene.
