SculptureCenter in Long Island City appointed Christian Rattemeyer as its new director after 12 years as the associate curator at the Museum of Modern Art.
Rattemeyer will oversee all exhibitions and programming and continue to lead the institution that is respected for its independent vision, intellectual rigor and dedication to commissioning new work by emerging and established artists.
“SculptureCenter was established by artists and continues to foster and promote living artists working all over the world,” Rattemeyer said. “The museum leads the conversation in contemporary art and has been a cultural pioneer in Long Island City. Its outstanding program has served and inspired a unique community of artists and colleagues. As a curator who has worked globally and values international dialogue, I hope to work with the museum’s dedicated team and board to strengthen our partnerships and engagement abroad, and deepen the opportunities we provide for our artists and our audiences.”
SculptureCenter was originally founded in 1928 and moved into an old trolley car repair factory on Purves Street in 2001. In 2013 it underwent an expansion and renovation under director Mary Ceruti, who is now executive director of the Walker Arts Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
“All of us at SculptureCenter are very pleased to have Christian Rattemeyer as our new director and truly excited about what lies ahead under his leadership,” SculptureCenter Board Chair Andreas Beroutsos said. “Christian’s deep and geographically broad roots in art history and contemporary art, his curatorial record of creative and insightful choices as well as insatiable interest into artistic innovation, the respect he commands among his peers, his institutional leadership qualities, and genuine focus on teamwork and people-and-artist development, made Christian the logical choice to lead SculptureCenter into the future.”
Rattemeyer began his career as an artists’ assistant at the ninth edition of Documenta in his hometown of Kassel, Germany, in 1992. In 1997, he founded and served as gallery director of Osmos, a contemporary project space in Berlin, which is now located in New York, and he was co-curator of the third and fourth International Biennials for Film and Architecture in Berlin. He relocated to New York in 2003 and joined Artists Space as curator, where he worked for four years.
“Christian has been a friend and supporter of SculptureCenter for nearly two decades, and we are so thrilled that he will be our new director,” SculptureCenter Board President Carol Bove said. “He is a passionate idealist who also brings practical institution-building skills and strategic insight to reinforce our strength as a platform for radical thought and practice. From his experiences gathered around the world, his long tenure in New York, and his solid history championing distinct voices, he will be a unifying force allowing SculptureCenter’s artistic energy to reverberate in a pivotal moment in our culture, as well as foster our mission to protect a free space for creativity unencumbered by market forces.”
Rattemeyer takes over SculptureCenters on Nov. 1.
