Marian Goodman Gallery Hires First Senior Curatorial Director

Marian Goodman Gallery, one of the best-known contemporary art dealers, has hired Ebony L. Haynes as its first-ever senior director and global head of curatorial affairs. ARTnews reported the appointment on 29 October 2026.

Curatorial affairs covers how a gallery chooses and presents the work it shows. The job is new at the gallery, so Haynes will be building the role as well as filling it.

Haynes most recently ran 52 Walker, a Kunsthalle-style exhibition space under the David Zwirner umbrella. A kunsthalle, the German word for "art hall", is a venue that puts on changing shows rather than keeping a permanent collection. She will start at Marian Goodman Gallery in late November.

The gallery is also changing at the top. Rose Lord and Junette Teng will serve as co-presidents, sharing responsibility for the gallery's strategic direction, meaning its long-term plans and priorities.

Emily-Jane Kirwan, the gallery's managing partner and head of sales, is leaving. She is moving to focus on cultural philanthropy, which means giving money and time to arts causes.

Taken together, the changes reshape the gallery's senior team. A new curatorial leader is arriving, a pair of co-presidents will share the top strategy role, and the head of sales is stepping away. Gallery staff, artists and collectors will now work with a different set of people at the top.

The announcement is a staffing story, not a sale or an exhibition. No new programme or financial figure was attached to it. Haynes's first shows and any changes to the gallery's schedule have not yet been announced.