Halona Norton-Westbrook closely examined the dozens of artworks hanging in a corridor of the Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth, smiling at each painting鈥檚 details.
On this early August day, the museum鈥檚 education staff was showcasing pieces by teenagers who created works inspired by the Modern鈥檚 permanent collection during art camp.
As she strolled through the hall, Norton-Westbrook, 43, said she couldn鈥檛 help but think about how the Fort Worth institution is building the next generation of contemporary artists and how she鈥檚 vested with leading the museum into the future.
Norton-Westbrook July 1, succeeding the museum鈥檚 .
Price, who served in the role since 1992, ran the Modern during periods of transformational growth, marked not only by the institution in the Cultural District but also by the growth in size and quality of its permanent collection.
As Norton-Westbrook settled into her first month in the role, she talked about how she wants to implement a strategic plan to grow the Fort Worth museum stature both locally and internationally. When asked how she prepared to move past a controversial exhibition, she made it clear that her focus was on the future.
Past leadership prepares her for Fort Worth
Art has been at the center of Norton-Westbrook鈥檚 life since childhood, when she was immersed in the creativity of the San Francisco Bay Area.
Then as a college student, she was mesmerized by an exhibition that featured 15 room-sized video installations to .
Norton-Westbrook said she found herself thinking about how museum staff brought the artist鈥檚 vision to life for audiences. That led her to pursue museum management.
鈥淭he ability to be immersed in somebody鈥檚 creative process and then to be the connection between that person, that artist and the rest of the world, that鈥檚 what was exciting to me,鈥� she said.
Norton-Westbrook spent five years as president and CEO of the Honolulu Museum of Art starting in January 2020. She developed the museum鈥檚 , guided a and secured . The museum saw its annual attendance jump .
Mike Watanabe, board chair of the Honolulu museum, said in February that Norton-Westbrook led through a period of that set a foundation for future growth.
When the opportunity to lead the Modern came into frame, Norton-Westbrook didn鈥檛 hesitate to throw her hat in the ring.
鈥�(Fort Worth) is a place with deep roots but also a lot of ambitious vision and interest in future growth,鈥� she said. 鈥淭hat combination of things makes it a really dynamic community to enter.鈥�
The Modern鈥檚 director role came with prestige.
Moving past national controversy
In January, Fort Worth police seized photographs from the Modern as part of in its 鈥淒iaries of Home鈥� exhibition.
Several of photographer Sally Mann鈥檚 images 鈥� originally featured in her 1992 book 鈥淚mmediate Family鈥� 鈥� showed her then-young children in the nude.
The case was dropped in late March after a grand jury against the Modern. The investigation drew national attention. Some civil liberties groups said the police work while Christian groups said .
Determined to move past the controversy, Norton-Westbrook said she鈥檚 spent her first month listening to museum staff, community members and art patrons to better understand how to shape exhibitions in the future.
鈥淲henever you walk into a new situation, the most important thing to do is to listen,鈥� she said. 鈥淚鈥檓 really just trying to be open to dialogue, to feedback, to understanding at this moment.鈥�
Beyond those conversations, Norton-Westbrook is dedicating time to crafting her artistic vision for the Modern.
A local lifeblood to art
The future of the Modern will include more community engagement, collaboration with curators and art acquisitions, she said.
The Modern draws international visitors, she said, but more Fort Worthians need to see themselves reflected in its art.
鈥淚 just want to see our audience grow and to see the Modern become something top of mind for everyone who lives here,鈥� she said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 the museum鈥檚 job to bring forward both the expected but the unexpected as well.鈥�
For example, in Hawaii, her team balanced the museum鈥檚 connections with Hawaiian culture while attracting global art that hadn鈥檛 been showcased in the city.
Norton-Westbrook declined to share specific details about her plans for the future since she hasn鈥檛 presented it to the Modern鈥檚 trustees, but said she wants to expand the museum鈥檚 .
The Modern has been celebrated for exhibits from prominent pop culture figures such as and , she said. Permanent pieces 鈥� such as Wangechi Mutu鈥檚 鈥淭he Seated III鈥� sculpture 鈥� are not as frequently spotlighted since curators work in a cycle of planning seasonal exhibitions before working on the next.
The Fort Worth museum has since August 2024.
鈥淲e鈥檙e not giving enough space to the permanent collection, so adjusting the balance of how often we do that,鈥� Norton-Westbrook said. 鈥淲e also want to support our curators by giving them a longer runway of planning and conceiving.鈥�
, chief curator at the Modern, is on board with Norton-Westbrook鈥檚 vision, highlighting how the museum director has already fostered a collaborative environment with the four-person curatorial team.
鈥淪he鈥檚 very present as a leader, but at the same time feeling nurturing to the staff,鈥� Karnes said. 鈥淎ll of her ideas are great. She鈥檚 also listening to us and our ideas, so it feels like a real collegial exchange.鈥�
Norton-Westbrook knows shaping the museum鈥檚 future will take time. She plans to lead the institution for the long haul, although she鈥檚 not sure she can match Price鈥檚 30-year tenure.
For now, she鈥檒l keep strolling through the Modern鈥檚 grounds, reminding herself the Fort Worth museum was where she was meant to be.
David Moreno is the arts and culture reporter for the Fort Worth Report. Contact him at david.moreno@fortworthreport.org or .
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