Melissa Chiu, curator, author, and longtime director of the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden in Washington DC, has been appointed director of the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum in New York, the Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation announced on April 9. 

Chiu has served as director of the Hirshhorn since 2014. During her tenure, she oversaw a renewed focus on contemporary art, increased attendance, and expanded digital initiatives to broaden access. She is currently leading a major campus revitalization, including a redesigned Sculpture Garden by Japanese architect and photographer Hiroshi Sugimoto, slated to reopen in October 2026. Previously, she joined New York’s Asia Society Museum in 2001 as its first curator of contemporary Asian and Asian American art and was appointed director in 2004, following an early career as an independent curator in Sydney. 

Commenting on the appointment, Mariët Westermann, director and CEO of the foundation, said that Chiu “has an outstanding and inspiring track record of leadership in the arts,” adding that she “transformed the Hirshhorn with the international and local disposition that is so special to our institution.”

Chiu stated that she looks forward to ensuring the Guggenheim “remains a place of joy and learning about art and artists for all who visit,” describing it as “a singularly iconic institution that has played a vital role in shaping culture since 1959.”

She will assume the role on September 1.

Yuqian Fan is an editorial assistant at ArtAsiaPacific.