The Museu de Arte de São Paulo, known as MASP, has named Flávia Almeida as its new president, effective September 2026. Artforum and ArtReview reported the appointment on 5 August 2026, with ARTnews confirming it the following day.

Almeida comes from outside the museum world. She has served as CEO of Península Participações, a Brazilian holding company, since 2019, and sits on the board of Carrefour France, according to MASP's official biography. Her professional background is in business and corporate governance rather than curatorial work.

MASP's current leadership page still lists Heitor Martins as president, with Almeida as vice-president, alongside vice-presidents Fábio Ulhoa Coelho and Fábio Magalhães. The page has not yet been updated to reflect the forthcoming change.

The museum she will lead is one of Latin America's most prominent art institutions, sitting on São Paulo's Avenida Paulista under architect Lina Bo Bardi's iconic glass-cleaved design. Its permanent collection spans European masters, African art, Brazilian modernism and contemporary work — a breadth unusual for a museum outside Europe or North America.

Visitors this August can see several exhibitions running concurrently. "Damián Ortega: matéria e energia" features the Mexican sculptor's work exploring matter and energy. "Carolina Caycedo: confluências" presents the Colombian artist's installations on water, land and Indigenous rights. "Sol Calero: Casa María Lionza" transforms gallery space into a vibrant, immersive installation. The Sala de Vídeo is screening works by Regina José Galindo, the Guatemalan performance artist. "Acervo em Transformação" — Portuguese for "Collection in Transformation" — keeps rotating works from the permanent holdings on view.

MASP also runs MASP Escola, offering online and in-person courses aimed at building critical engagement with art — a public-facing education arm that extends the museum's reach beyond its exhibition programme.

The presidency of a major museum is as much a financial and governance role as an artistic one. The president oversees institutional strategy, fundraising and stakeholder relationships. Almeida's corporate background — running a holding company and serving on an international retail board — suggests a leader steeped in operational and financial management rather than curatorial direction.

For a museum that stages ambitious exhibition calendars, maintains a landmark building and runs an education programme, that financial and governance experience will be central to what comes next.