Hirshhorn Announces Marina Isgro as Associate Curator of Media and Performance Art and Robert and Arlene Kogod Secretarial Scholar
March 30, 2020
Hirshhorn Announces Marina Isgro as Associate Curator of Media and Performance Art and Robert and Arlene Kogod Secretarial Scholar
Isgro Will Enhance and Expand the Museum’s Pioneering Collection of New Media, Including Film, Video and Performance
The Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden announces the appointment of Dr. Marina C. Isgro to the position of Associate Curator of Media and Performance Art and Robert and Arlene Kogod Secretarial Scholar as of March 16, 2020. In her new role, Isgro will work under the leadership of Hirshhorn Director Melissa Chiu and Chief Curator Stéphane Aquin to shape a dynamic exhibition and public programming schedule that reflects the museum’s continued commitment to the collection and presentation of contemporary new media art, including film, video, and performance.
“During a time when new media and performance art is increasingly activated as a vehicle to discuss issues of our generation, we are excited to bring in Marina Isgro’s perspective to help ensure these works are presented in thoughtful ways that challenge viewers to understand and connect with our world more broadly,” said Chiu. “Marina has honed her skills and reputation as one of the emerging experts in this growing field and will provide excellent leadership as we develop creative, experimental programming that underscores the Hirshhorn’s dedication to art of the 21st century.”
For over a decade, the Hirshhorn has established a distinct exhibition program that highlights the work of artists utilizing unconventional, experimental media. Isgro’s appointment follows the acquisition of a number of canonical new media works for the Museum’s collection, including Tino Sehgal’s This You (2006), Arthur Jafa’s Love Is the Message, the Message Is Death (2016), Helen Marten’s Evian Disease (2012), Ed Atkins’s Safe Conduct (2016) and Hito Steyerl’s How Not to Be Seen (2013). The Museum is also preparing to unveil two major exhibitions highlighting new media artwork: an exhibition featuring the work of widely influential interdisciplinary artist Laurie Anderson and the first midcareer survey solely dedicated to the work of pioneering post-Internet artist Jon Rafman.
Generous support for this position is provided by Robert and Arlene Kogod, Washington philanthropists and art collectors. Robert Kogod is also a member of the Smithsonian’s Board of Regents. Their gift supports the Secretary’s Scholars, a Smithsonian-wide initiative launched by former Secretary David Skorton in 2016, which seeks to accelerate the institution’s global impact by funding the next generation of intellectual leaders. In addition to the media and performance art position at the Hirshhorn, the Kogods have supported Secretarial Scholars across the Smithsonian Institution.
“Dr. Isgro’s deep understanding of the complexities, history and current direction of new media art, alongside her contributions to scholarship and background in education, distinctly positions her to contribute thought-provoking and engaging experiences for our audiences,” said Chief Curator Stéphane Aquin. “Anchored by the strong collection and exhibition history of new media, video and performance art at the Hirshhorn, we are excited to continue to explore and expand on the ways in which we present this work to the public.”
Formerly serving as the inaugural Nam June Paik Research Fellow at the Harvard Art Museums’ Division of Modern and Contemporary Art, Isgro has contributed her curation skills in numerous exhibitions, including Nam June Paik: Screen Play, and directed the acquisition of two Paik videos. She oversaw the Museums’ 1960s collections galleries and helped to facilitate a commission by contemporary video artist Krzysztof Wodiczko. She previously held the PMA/Penn Mellon Graduate Fellowship position at the Philadelphia Museum of Art in the Department of Contemporary Art. In her various roles as curator and scholar, Isgro has written and lectured extensively on artists such as Jean Tinguely and Robert Rauschenberg and bears expertise in various topics relating to the foundational generation of video artists; the Fluxus group and early performance art; kinetic and light art; and contemporary artists working with animation and the Internet.
About the Hirshhorn
The Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden is the national museum of modern and contemporary art and a leading voice for 21st-century art and culture. Part of the Smithsonian, the Hirshhorn is located prominently on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. Its holdings encompass one of the most important collections of postwar American and European art in the world. The Hirshhorn presents diverse exhibitions and offers an array of public programs on the art of our time—free to all, 364 days a year (closed Dec. 25). For more information, visit hirshhorn.si.edu.
Image: Courtesy of Marina Isgro
