As its current leader, Sally Tallant, prepares to move across the pond, the Queens Museum has selected her deputy director, Debra Wimpfheimer, to be its next executive director. The museum’s board of trustees announced Wimpfheimer’s promotion on Wednesday (11 February), with board chair Paula Kirby praising Wimpfheimer for “her experience and deep-rooted connection to Queens”.
A native of Queens who has held various positions at the museum since 2002, Wimpfheimer previously held development roles at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts in Manhattan and Boston Medical Center.
“The Queens Museum has evolved enormously since I arrived in 2002, and I’m deeply proud to have been part of that transformation,” Wimpfheimer tells The Art Newspaper. “One of the most impactful developments has been the way the museum committed early on to artists and communities through curatorial programmes, educational initiatives and public programmes that welcomed children, families and older adults in meaningful ways.”
Tallant’s departure to lead the Hayward Gallery and visual arts at the Southbank Centre in London, and Wimpfheimer’s ascent to the top post at the Queens Museum, come as the New York institution pursues a significant expansion to its city-owned home, which was originally built as the New York City Pavilion for the 1939 World’s Fair. Later, the building temporarily housed the United Nations General Assembly while the United Nations complex in Manhattan was under construction.
“Like many institutions, we are always learning how to better align our physical space with our work,” Wimpfheimer says. “While the Queens Museum has long been deeply community-engaged, there is more work to do to ensure that our building itself feels fully welcoming, accessible and responsive to the wide range of needs, interests and perspectives of our audiences.”
In 2028, the museum is scheduled to inaugurate the 15,000-sq.-ft Suna Children’s Museum. That project will be accompanied by other expansions of the museum’s facilities in Flushing Meadows Corona Park, including a dedicated World’s Fair study centre and archive, additional permanent collection galleries and a space dedicated to older adults.
“As director, I’m excited to build on this trajectory of inclusivity, grow new audiences and ensure that the Queens Museum reflects the vibrancy, creativity and energy of this borough,” Wimpfheimer says. “I look forward to working together with our team to ensure the Queens Museum continues to be a point of pride for Queens.”
She adds: “I’ve learned so much working alongside visionary directors Tom Finkelpearl and Sally Tallant, and in close collaboration with our board and staff.” (Wimpfheimer’s tenure at the museum also overlapped with the three-year directorship of Laura Raicovich, which ended when Raicovich resigned—or was forced out—amid disagreements with the board.)
