The Blanton Museum of Art has appointed Kenyon Adams as its new Director of Public Programs.
Adams joins the Blanton as it prepares to launch a new line-up of programming in conjunction with the reopening of its grounds with completion expected in Spring 2023.
“We are delighted to welcome Kenyon Adams to the Blanton,” said director Simone Wicha. “He brings a wealth of experience in the arts and a proven track record of success in visionary public programming. I’m confident Kenyon will help us create programs that make the most of these beautiful new spaces, our collections, and our exhibitions—ensuring the Blanton is a vibrant and beloved destination.”
Since moving to Austin from Brooklyn last fall, Adams has worked as an advisor to the Fusebox Festival. He is a Senior Fellow at the Hannah Arendt Center at Bard College and Resident Artist at Texas Performing Arts.
“I’m thrilled to join the Blanton during this transformational stage and lead its public programming in a reimagined space,” said Adams. “The unique potential of public programs is the opportunity to activate spaces in ways that connect audiences, mission, and institutional memory. I greatly look forward to working with the team to further engage Austin’s diverse communities.”
Adams previously served as the founding Director of the Arts Initiatives at Grace Farms and the SANAA-designed River Building in New Canaan, CT, where he developed and led public arts programming for an award-winning international institution that welcomed a variety of audiences. He also has contributed in various roles to the Louis Armstrong House Museum, Live Ideas (New York Live Arts), the Alpine Fellowship, the Langston Hughes Project, YoungArts, the National Arts Policy Roundtable (Americans for the Arts), the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, and the Fisher Center for the Performing Arts at Bard College.
Adams has performed nationally as a singer, songwriter, and blues harmonica player. He studied Religion & Literature at Yale Divinity School, and Theology of Contemporary Performance at the Yale Institute of Sacred Music. He holds a BFA from Southern Methodist University and an MAR from Yale University.
