Studio Museum in Harlem Announces 2026 Arts Leadership Praxis Participants

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HARLEM, NEW YORK, NY, FEBRUARY 17, 2026 — The Studio Museum in Harlem today announced the names of the eight participants in this year’s Arts Leadership Praxis, an annual program providing professional development and cohort-building opportunities to mid-career museum professionals of color and those deeply invested in Black cultural production. The 2026 participants, the first cohort to convene in the Museum’s new purpose-built home, are: Camille Brown, Jadine Collingwood, Grace Deveney, Michael J. Ewing, Destinee Filmore, Annissa Malvoisin, Mia Matthias, and Delphine Sims.

The Arts Leadership Praxis is a six-month program, launched in 2024, that was conceived for museum professionals with approximately five to ten years of experience in curatorial, education, or public programming positions. As part of the Studio Museum Institute, the program joins a suite of initiatives developed by the Museum in support of arts professionals with the goal of addressing the challenges of professional advancement in arts institutions.

As the program continues to evolve, its 2026 participants will engage in conversations and seminars with renowned arts professionals, take part in studio visits with notable artists, receive individual mentorship, and attend in-person multiday workshops in New York, Los Angeles, and Detroit. The program also immerses participants in an expansive community of cultural workers and assists them with cultivating a network across institutions and career levels in an effort to prepare the cohort for leadership roles within the arts.

Thelma Golden, Ford Foundation Director and Chief Curator of the Studio Museum in Harlem, said, “The Studio Museum in Harlem is delighted to welcome the 2026 participants of our annual Arts Leadership Praxis. This program from the Studio Museum Institute builds upon our historic efforts to support professionals who share our passion for an expansive arts landscape. I look forward to seeing this cohort continue to do groundbreaking work during the program and beyond. My sincere thanks go to llk Yasha for leading this essential program for our institution.”

Ilk Yasha, Director of the Studio Museum Institute at the Studio Museum in Harlem, said, "Each Arts Leadership Praxis cohort affirms that leadership grounded in Black cultural knowledge, collectivity, and critical thinking is essential to the future of institutions. It is a great honor to support each unique cohort through this program."

The eight participants in the 2026 class were nominated by experts in the field and then reviewed through an application process. They are:

• Camille Brown, Associate Curator, the Phillips Collection
• Jadine Collingwood, Pamela Alper Associate Curator, Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago
• Grace Deveney, David C. and Sarajean Ruttenberg Associate Curator of Photography and Media, Art Institute of Chicago
• Michael J. Ewing, Associate Curator, Frist Art Museum
• Destinee Filmore, Assistant Curator of Twentieth-Century American Art, the Metropolitan Museum of Art
• Annissa Malvoisin, Associate Curator of African Art, Brooklyn Museum; Affiliated Faculty, Bard Graduate Center
• Mia Matthias, Assistant Curator, Department of Painting and Sculpture, the Museum of Modern Art
• Delphine Sims, Assistant Curator in the Department of Photography, San Francisco Museum of Modern Art

Nationally-based arts professionals and artists contributing their guidance and expertise to the 2026 cohort include Taylor Aldridge, Executive Director, Modern Ancient Brown Foundation; Salome Asega, Director, NEW INC, New Museum, and artist; Lauren Tate Baeza, Fred and Rita Richman Curator of African Art, High Museum of Art; Jessica Bell Brown, Executive Director, Institute for Contemporary Art at Virginia Commonwealth University; Rashida Bumbray, independent curator and choreographer; Tina Campt, Director of the Princeton Atelier, Lewin Center of the Arts, Princeton University; Sandra Jackson-Dumont, independent curator, educator, and cultural strategist; Naima Keith, Vice President of Education and Public Programs, Los Angeles County Museum of Art; T. Lax, Curator, Department of Media and Performance, the Museum of Modern Art; Sheila McDaniel, Chief Operating Officer, International African American Museum; Meg Onli, Nancy and Fred Poses Curator, the Whitney Museum of American Art; Okwui Okpokwasili, artist; Legacy Russell, Executive Director and Chief Curator, The Kitchen; and Franklin Sirmans, Director, Pérez Art Museum Miami, among others.

The Arts Leadership Praxis program is funded by a grant from the Ford Foundation.

About the Studio Museum in Harlem
Founded in 1968 by a diverse group of artists, community activists, and philanthropists, the Studio Museum in Harlem is internationally known for its catalytic role in promoting the work of artists of African descent. The Studio Museum’s new home, situated at its longtime location on West 125th Street, opened to the public on November 15, 2025. Designed by Adjaye Associates with Cooper Robertson serving as executive architect, the building—the first created expressly for the institution’s program—enables the Studio Museum to better serve a growing and diverse audience, provide additional educational opportunities for people of all ages, expand its program of world-renowned exhibitions, effectively display its singular collection, and strengthen its trailblazing Artist-in-Residence program.

For more information, visit studiomuseum.org.

Visitor Information
The Studio Museum in Harlem is located at 144 West 125th Street, between Malcolm X Boulevard (Lenox Avenue) and Adam Clayton Powell Boulevard (Seventh Avenue).

The Studio Museum is open Wednesday through Sunday, from 11:00 am to 6:00 pm, with extended hours on Friday and Saturday, from 11:00 am to 9:00 pm.

The Museum is open to Members on Saturday mornings, from 10:00 to 11:00 am, before the galleries open to the public.

Admission rates are offered as a suggestion, with Sundays free for everyone. Suggested rates are $16 for adults and $9 for seniors (sixty-five years and over), students, and visitors with disabilities (care partners are free). Admission is free for children aged sixteen and under.

Tickets to the Studio Museum may be purchased online at studiomuseum.org/visit or at the Museum.

Media Contact
Sasha Cordingley
Studio Museum in Harlem
[email protected]

Meagan Jones
Polskin Arts
[email protected]