The Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth has announced its new leader: Halona Norton-Westbrook.
Norton-Westbrook, who has served as director and CEO of the Honolulu Museum of Art since 2020, starts her new job on July 1.
She takes over for longtime director Marla Price, who announced her retirement last March.
鈥淭he Modern is a museum of extraordinary ambition and impact, and I am honored to lead it into the future,鈥� Norton-Westbrook said in a statement. She was unavailable for interviews Tuesday.
During Norton-Westbrook鈥檚 tenure in Honolulu, the museum increased its attendance, developed its first strategic plan and began a $4 million construction project to restore and expand the institution鈥檚 art school, according to a news release sent by the Modern.
Prior to her stint in Hawaii, Norton-Westbrook worked at the Toledo Museum of Art as a curator of modern and contemporary art as well as its director of curatorial affairs.
Challenges ahead
The announcement of Norton-Westbrook鈥檚 appointment comes as the museum finds itself at the center of an investigation into alleged child pornography after four photos were seized from its Diaries of Home exhibition earlier this year.
The photographs were taken by the Virginia artist Sally Mann. The photos, which show her children nude, were taken more than 30 years ago and have been exhibited nationally.
The exhibition closed Feb. 2, but the Fort Worth Police Department continues to hold the pieces, citing a pending investigation into alleged child pornography.
Last week, three civil liberties organizations called on police to return the works.
Michael Auping, former chief curator at the museum, was not involved in the search and said he hasn鈥檛 met Norton-Westbrook. But he noted that she will be leading an institution with an outsized role as one of the oldest contemporary art museums in the country. The Modern was founded 1892.
鈥�There are challenges ahead that none of us can really predict,鈥� Auping said.
鈥淏ut I think what we can all predict is that what museums are trying to do right now is to attract as many communities of people as possible. Number one and number two, raise a lot of money because it costs a lot of money to run museums in this day and age.鈥�
Everything, from insurance to transportation for art, is more expensive, he said.
鈥淚t isn't just the price of eggs that have gone up, right? It's the cost of everything.鈥�
But Norton-Westbrook will take on these challenges with the city鈥檚 support, Auping said.
鈥�Fort Worth has always supported its directors and its curators, and I'm positive it will continue to do that,鈥� he said.
Leadership past and present
In a statement, Rafael G. Garza, president of the Modern鈥檚 board of trustees, said Norton-Westbrook鈥檚 combination of vision, leadership and commitment to art make her the right person for the job.
鈥淗er impactful track record of strategic thinking, community engagement, and curatorial excellence makes her the ideal dynamic leader to guide the Modern into its next chapter,鈥� he said.
鈥淲e are confident that under her direction, the museum will build upon its remarkable legacy within the Fort Worth community and continue to evolve as a dynamic cultural hub of international significance.鈥�
Norton-Westbrook will take the reins from Price, who held the role for over 30 years and was referred to as a 鈥淢odern-day miracle鈥� for her leadership steering the museum into national prominence.
Price presided over the museum as globally renowned architect Tadao Ando worked on its new building, which significantly increased the museum鈥檚 physical footprint. She also made key hires including longtime curator of education Terri Thornton, former chief curator Auping, and current chief curator Andrea Karnes.
Price was also the first woman to serve as the museum鈥檚 director and took over months before the museum鈥檚 centennial celebration in 1992.
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