The blooloop 50 Museum Influencer List 2022

Chris Michaelsis the inaugural director of the Reel Store, the UK’s first permanentimmersive art gallery.In this role, he is responsible for the museum’s strategic direction and curatorial leadership. Michaels said he is “incredibly excited” to jointhe Reel Store“at this pivotal time”. The gallery is “leading the way in a new generation of museums and galleries that are built on the possibilities of digital”, he added.

He most recently served as the director of digital, communications and technology at the National Gallery in London. He sat on the institution's executive committee and his directorate were responsible for digital services, membership and ticketing, creative, IT and marketing, press and public affairs. He is also a visiting senior research fellow at King’s College London, and has a PhD from the University of Bristol.

Before he joined the National Gallery, Michaels worked at the British Museum as head of digital and publishing. During this time, he founded the museum’s digital department, as well as creating its digital strategy. He is currently acting as an advisor to the Humboldt Forum in Berlin and has previously provided advice to institutions in Qatar and Singapore. Prior to his museum career, he was CEO of the educational start-up Mindshapes.

Michaels is a firm believer in the fact that technology has the potential to help us find solutions to the climate crisis. He says that technology can help museums to find ways to communicate with the world, and can also offer new ways to solve our own challenges. He spoke at greenloop 2022 about the rewards and risks of the new technologies for museums and art galleries, exploring the relationship between sustainability and technology.

“As the growth of that avalanche of digital data continues to increase in the next couple of years, the risks of digital, and the relationship between museum digital and the climate crisis, is very plain to us," he said in a discussion with blooloop. "Suddenly, the cultural sector finds itself in the middle of this argument in a place it hasn’t been before.

“These are tough times, with tough thinking and tough decisions to be made. But I am positive because I can see it happening in the National Gallery; I see it happening elsewhere, that we can and will change behaviours."

David Walsh is a collector of archaeology and contemporary art. In 2011, he opened the Museum of Old and New Art (Mona) near Hobart in Tasmania, Australia. Within a decade, the museum transformed the island's profile and brought thousands of visitors. During this time, Walsh has continued to add to the museum and to invent new performances and attractions that can be found within the space. The museum also hosts temporary exhibitions.

The architecture of the museum is labyrinth-like and it contains a collection of artworks that is at times provocative. Walsh himself has previously described it as a “subversive adult Disneyland”. Alongside its permanent collection and exhibitions, the museum also features The Source Restaurant, the Moorilla Winery, and Moo Brew Beer, as well as hosting events and music festivals.

Walsh began with a small museum of antiquities, in an original Italian courtyard house located on the site of the Moorilla vineyard, where he also ran a winery alongside a restaurant business and accommodation. He wanted to expand on this and create a new museum to reflect his growing interest in contemporary art. Mark Wilsdon, the former co-CEO of Mona, spoke to blooloop in 2019 about the museum's creation:

“[Walsh] was predominantly collecting antiquities: coins, artefacts of that nature, and had them on show here in the converted house free to the public, “says Wilsdon. However, it was on a fairly small scale. Those of us who were working here then were sort of excited, but we didn’t really understand the magnitude of what he had in mind until we saw the plans and understood how large an undertaking it was, and how significant, architecturally and culturally, it was going to be.

“So, we embarked on Mona, which opened on January 21, 2011. Having grown up in Hobart, Tasmania, I really did feel that Hobart changed on that day.”

Ibrahim Tchan is a Beninese jurist specialising in cultural heritage. He is the director and co-founder of the Tata Somba Ecomuseum, the first ecological museum in West Africa. Tchan is also a steering committee member of the Climate Heritage Network (CHN), and serves as the Africa region representative within the Climate Heritage Network’s Global Alliance for Buildings and Construction.

Tchan started coordinating a cultural landscape preservation project after Koutammakou, the Land of the Batammariba was included on the 2020 World Monuments Watch. The project received financial support from the World Monuments Fund (WMF), which safeguards cultural heritage across the globe. Koutammakou, the Land of the Batammariba is a cultural landscape designated in 2004 as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in northern Togo.

“The Batammariba people of modern-day Benin and Togo first arrived in the mountainous savanna region that is now their homeland during the 17th or 18th century. On the move to escape the threat of subordination to other groups, the Batammariba brought with them a sense of independence and strong cultural identity, anchored in their building traditions,” says WMF.

“The Batammariba name, used by the Batammariba themselves, means ‘those who are the real architects of earth’, pointing to the foundational place of earthen construction traditions for Batammariba society and culture.”

Tchan works on the traditional techniques and construction materials used in Tata Somba architecture. He is active in projects involving the participation of local communities, and designed a didactic tool called ConP’Art that educates children on African world heritage.

Aki Carpenter is a principal and the director of social projects at Ralph Appelbaum Associates (RAA), a multidisciplinary firm specialising in the planning and design of museums, exhibits, educational environments and visitor attractions. Carpenter has opened more than 10 award-winning museums and cultural institutions across the world.

Her work at RAA includes leading the exhibition design for the museum at the Obama Presidential Center in Chicago, Museum of Chinese in America in New York City, the Japanese American National Museum in Los Angeles, the African American Museum in Philadelphia, Freedom Rides Museum in Montgomery, Alabama, and the first phase of the Museum of Civil Rights in Harlem, New York.

Carpenter’s most recently opened project involved the creative direction for the exhibition design for the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington, DC. She is looking to advance social justice within the museum sector, and believes that a visitor experience is most memorable when the design is inspired by the story. Her work aims to tell some of the most important stories throughout history and addresses topics of social justice, activism and community.

She collaborates with curators, scholars, directors, and executives to create experiences that inspire and connect audiences. Carpenter has previously provided art direction for Hawaii’s Bishop Museum, the International African American Museum in Charleston, South Carolina, and the Mandela Day installation at New York’s Grand Central Terminal. All of these have won major design awards. 

Carpenter is the co-founder of the BIPOC Directors Collective, an initiative by directors of colour for fellow and future directors of colour. She strives to develop young designers of colour and female-identifying leaders. She is also a founding member and the creative director for Ripple Effect, a New Orleans-based environmental education start-up company dedicated to K-12 education on socio-ecological issues of climate change.

Margo Ngawa Neale is a senior indigenous curator at the National Museum of Australia. She is head of the museum’s Indigenous Knowledges Curatorial Centre, and an adjunct professor in the Australian National University’s Centre for Indigenous History. The museum’s Indigenous Knowledges Curatorial Centre explores Australian history from an indigenous perspective. It seeks to increase knowledge of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures, traditions, art, histories and world views.

Neale has published extensively and curated major innovative exhibitions, including the award-winning ‘Songlines: Tracking the Seven Sisters’. She is also editing the First Knowledges book series, written by Bruce Pascoe and Bill Gammage. The series “provides a deeper understanding of the expertise and ingenuity of indigenous Australians”. Neale works to make Australian indigenous art accessible to multiple audiences.

Additionally, Neale curated the digital exhibition ‘Connections’, which used cutting-edge visual, audio and aroma technologies to transform original artworks by First Nations artists. These include Emily Kame Kngwarreye, Albert Namatjira, Tommy Watson, Gabriella Possum Nungurrayi, Anna Pitjara and Lin Onus. ‘Connections’ was conceived, created and developed by Grande Experiences. 

‘The museum is known for exploring and sharing First Peoples’ stories globally, for increasing accessibility and for bringing our stories alive. There can be no better way to bring our songlines stories alive than through this awe-inspiring multi-sensory display of Connection,” said Neale.

“This is the 21st century and younger demographics inhabit the digital domain. If we want to expose them to Aboriginal art and culture, we need to meet with them there,” she added.

“Spectacles like this do not replace static exhibitions but complement them and attract a broader spectrum of people who may not otherwise visit galleries and museums. Multi-sensory experiences like this allow us to stage the exhibition in more places, more often and for indigenous culture to get more exposure all around the world.”

Joy Bailey-Bryant is president, US, of Lord Cultural Resources and has spent over 20 years making the world a better place through culture. She was appointed to the position of president of Lord US in January 2021, where she is responsible for leading all services throughout the United States, based in the New York office. Bailey-Bryant also serves on the firm’s global leadership team.

“From day one, this company has placed people at the centre of every aspect of cultural strategy,” said Lord co-founder Gail Lord, speaking after her appointment. “Joy embodies our ‘pro-people’ values in every way. We are fortunate to have such a talented, visionary leader to drive our growth in the United States.”

Bailey-Bryant is a leader in the development of culturally specific museums where people of colour are able to tell and interpret their own stories. She has helped to plan projects like the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington, D.C., where she organised consultations with over 1,000 stakeholders across the country to learn their expectations for the new museum. She also worked on the National September 11 Memorial and Museum at the World Trade Center in New York.

Driven by the engagement philosophy of “meet people where they are, Bailey-Bryant has been an innovator in creating a new type of city and regional cultural plan from the bottom up by facilitating citywide engagements with people in their neighbourhoods. She was part of the team that planned and opened the expansion of the Albany Civil Rights Institute in Albany, Georgia—unearthing thousands of untold stories of the Southwest Georgia Civil Rights Movement.

One nominator said: “Through her leadership Joy is an advocate for inclusivity, diversity, accessibility, equity and belonging," said one nominator. "She surrounds herself with a great team and is an avid supporter of their growth, development, and well-being."

Sarah Sutton is CEO of Environment and Culture Partners, a non-profit organisation dedicated to strengthening and broadening the environmental leadership of the cultural sector. Sutton co-founded the company in 2021 with Stephanie Shapiro.

For over 30 years, Sutton has led the US museum sector in sustainability and climate action, leading the field as a writer, consultant, presenter, and expert, and working to make a difference not only for museums but for the world as we face the climate crisis. She is the co-author of The Green Museum: A Primer on Environmental Practice, published in 2008, and was also a founding board member of AAM's professional network dedicated to sustainability.

In response to Donald Trump withdrawing the US from the Paris Climate Agreement in 2017, Sutton launched #MuseumsForParis, allowing people from across the cultural sector to showcase how they were participating in climate action. She then went on to create and lead the cultural sector as part of We Are Still In, a 3,900+ coalition of non-federal US actors doing climate work. This work is now carried on as American Is All In, where she remains the sector lead.

Sutton was recognised with the AAM Environment and Climate Network’s first Individual Impact Award in 2019. She was the plenary speaker for the International Council of Museums and represented the US Cultural Sector's climate work at COP25. Sutton was one of 100 global representatives invited to advise ICOMOS-IPCC-UNESCO on the role of cultural heritage in IPCC Assessments, and also represented the US cultural sector at COP26.

"What is most compelling is Sarah’s genuine dedication to improving the world in light of a changing climate," said one nominator. "She does so not only to benefit cultural institutions (eg. become more energy efficient) but also to use the assets of cultural institutions (trusted mission-forward institutions) to educate the public about the importance of climate action. Sarah's work is making a difference and she will continue to be a leader, inspiration, partner, and advocate for museums and the world."

Jacqueline Stewart has been director and CEO of The Academy Museum of Motion Pictures since July 2022 and previously served as the new museum's chief artistic and programming officer. She is a leading film historian, scholar, archivist and educator, and the author of the award-winning book Migrating to the Movies: Cinema and Black Urban Modernity. In addition, she hosts ‘Silent Sunday Nights’ on Turner Classic Movies and has taught American film history at the University of Chicago, specialising in African American cinema.

Following the announcement of her appointment as president and CEO, Ted Sarandos, chair of the Academy Museum’s Board of Trustees and co-CEO of Netflix, said, “The Board warmly and unanimously agrees that Jacqueline Stewart is the ideal choice to lead the Academy Museum into the future.

"A strong and inspiring partner to Bill Kramer throughout the period leading up to our opening, she gave indispensable direction to the curatorial program that has been so widely admired. Her assumption of the role of Director and President is a testament to both the intellectual heft of the Academy Museum and its institutional strength.”

Stewart herself added: “Our ambition in opening the Academy Museum was to give Los Angeles and the world an unprecedented institution for understanding and appreciating the history and culture of cinema, in all its artistic glory and all its power to influence and reflect society. I feel deeply honored to have been chosen for this new role and look forward to working with our Board of Trustees, our COO and General Counsel Brendan Connell Jr., our wonderfully talented staff, and with Bill Kramer and the Academy, as we continue to advance our mission.”

She also founded the South Side Home Movie Project in 2005, in order to preserve, digitise and screen amateur footage that documents the lives of South Side residents.

Dr Adila Laidi-Hanieh is the director general of The Palestinian Museum. This is a flagship project of the Welfare Association, a non-profit organisation that develops humanitarian projects in Palestine. It opened in 2016 and is located in Birzeit, 25 kilometres north of Jerusalem. Heneghan Peng is the architectural firm responsible for the building - the same firm behind the Grand Egyptian Museum.

Laidi-Hanieh has been in this role since 2018 and has been instrumental in setting a schedule of exhibitions, as well as developing the museum's first five-year programme strategy. She is also responsible for creating the institution's internal structure, in order to develop a framework where professional practices are grown, experience is accumulated, and standards of excellence are set, in order to build a museum that is sustainable. In taking on the role, Laidi-Hanieh established two new departments, which are focused on curating, and on research and knowledge programming.

The museum's research programs develop knowledge that is relevant inside and outside Palestine and it aims to connect with the 10 million Palestinians scattered around the world, as well as with all those interested in the region, transcending political and geographical borders. In 2020, Laidi-Hanieh led the museum's COVID-19 lockdown programming, meaning that it was able to continue providing activities online and also allowing it to grow its audience, reaching a wider number of people.

A writer and scholar, her mission is to produce learning experiences about Palestine, its people and its history, and to engage audiences with these experiences. During her tenure, the museum won the 2019 Aga Khan Award for Architecture. Laidi-Hanieh is also the founding director of the Khalil Sakakini Cultural Centre NGO and has published a number of essays and books. She holds a PhD in Cultural Studies from George Mason University as a Fulbright Scholar, as well as an MA in Arab Studies from Georgetown University.

A professor of digital museology at the École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) in Lausanne, Switzerland, Professor Sarah Kenderdine researches at the forefront of interactive and immersive experiences for museums, galleries, libraries and archives.

Kenderdine is considered a pioneer in the fields of digital heritage and digital museology, and is a regular keynote speaker at related forums internationally, including the World Economic Forum (WEF).

She has built a new laboratory for experimental museology (eM+) at EPFL. This explores the convergence of aesthetic practice, visual analytics and cultural data. She also serves as the director and lead curator of EPFL’s new art/science initiative, inaugurated in 2016 as ArtLab. In addition, she develops interactive and immersive experiences for museums and galleries, often employing interactive cinema and augmented reality (AR).

Kenderdine has produced more than 80 exhibitions and installations for museums worldwide and has 35 peer-reviewed publications, including two books to her name. In addition to her museum exhibition work, Kenderdine conceives and designs large-scale immersive visualisation systems for public audiences, industry and researchers.

She curated the recent Deep Fakes: Art and its Double exhibition at EPFL, which she said was  “the culmination of several years of new creative practices emerging from the world of computer science". Kenderdine added: “It was only recently that artists and producers began to fully grasp the potential of computational production and new forms of art."  The exhibition showcased technologies disrupting the art world, including artificial intelligence (AI), computer vision, interactive and immersive media, and 3D and 5D printing.