Oklahoma City Museum of Art names Michael J. Anderson new president and CEO

The Oklahoma City Museum of Art announced this morning that Michael J. Anderson has been named the museum's president and CEO, following a national search led by board chair-elect Meg Salyer.

Anderson, previously director of curatorial affairs, has been interim president and CEO of the museum since July 2019.

“I would like to thank Michael, the OKCMOA leadership team and the Museum staff for running the Museum smoothly and efficiently during this time of transition,” said Cynda Ottaway, OKCMOA board chair, in a statement. “I also appreciate the many hours of time that our board members volunteered to assist in the search process, especially Meg and her efforts in the national search. I am confident in Michael’s abilities to lead us through our upcoming year that includes the celebration of the Museum’s 75^th anniversary in May and into the future.”

As previously reported, Anderson took the interim position after previous President and CEO E. Michael Whittington parted ways with the museum last summer. No reason for his departure was released.

“I am honored to serve as the next leader of this historic institution. I am looking forward to building on the Museum’s many years of service to the community. Our 75^th anniversary in May will kick off a year of exciting announcements and events. I sincerely appreciate all the hard work the Museum staff has put in to this year’s programs and exhibitions and am thrilled to lead us at such a monumental time in the Museum’s history,” Anderson said in a statement. 

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During his tenure at the museum, Anderson has continued to develop the Museum Film program, bringing the best in independent, foreign language and classic cinema to the Oklahoma City community. He has curated and managed numerous exhibitions, including “Our City, Our Collection,” “Matisse in His Time” and “Apichatpong Weerasethakul: The Serenity of Madness."

He has led efforts to imaginatively re-interpret the museum's permanent collection, culminating in last year’s reinstallation of the permanent collection titled “From the Golden Age to the Moving Image: The Changing Face of the Permanent Collection.” Anderson has also been involved heavily in building the Museum’s permanent collection, helping to bring artists such as Kehinde Wiley, Thomas Cole and Fletcher Benton into the collection.

Anderson earned his doctorate in History of Art and Film Studies at Yale University in 2013. Before attending Yale, Anderson earned a master’s degree in Cinema Studies from New York University and a bachelor’s degree in European Studies from Hillsdale College in Michigan. 

Anderson has been with the museum since 2014.

Whittington joined the museum as president and CEO in April 2013. He previously served as the executive director of the Monterey Museum of Art in Monterey, California.

Whittington replaced Glen Gentele, who left the museum in April 2012 after acting as president and CEO for three years.

Gentele succeeded Carolyn Hill, who served as executive director of the museum from 1994 until retiring in 2008. Under her leadership, the museum became a nationally recognized institution, moved to its current home in downtown Oklahoma City and embarked on a campaign to acquire its signature collection of Dale Chihuly glass art. Hill died in 2010 at the age of 72. 

-BAM