The National Portrait Gallery’s board of trustees have announced the appointment of Dr Nicholas Cullinan as the new director of the Gallery, following the stepping down of director Sandy Nairne to pursue writing and advisory work. Cullinan will take up his new post in spring 2015.
Curator of Modern and Contemporary Art at New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art since early 2013, Cullinan previously worked as curator of International Modern Art at Tate Modern (2007-2013), where he worked on exhibitions such as Henri Matisse: The Cut-Outs (2014), Malevich (2014), Edvard Munch: The Modern Eye (2012), Tacita Dean: FILM (2011), Duchamp, Man Ray, Picabia (2008) and Cy Twombly: Cycles and Seasons (2008). While at Tate, Dr Cullinan also worked on acquisitions and collection displays, founded a committee for Russian and Eastern Europe art and was involved with many aspects of the second phase of the Tate Modern project, for which the new building, designed by Herzog & De Meuron, is scheduled to open in 2016.
Cullinan returns to the National Portrait Gallery having first worked there as a part-time visitor services assistant (2001-2003).
6 January 2014.