Last month, the Queens Museum Board of Trustees announced that Debra Wimpfheimer would serve as the museum’s next executive director. Wimpfheimer replaces Sally Tallant, who recently ended her seven-year term as head of the Hayward Gallery at London’s Southbank Centre. We caught up with Wimpfheimer to hear about her plans for one of the five boroughs’ most unique establishments.
Your new job sees you take on this role when Sally Tallant leaves for London. How do you intend to follow suit, and where might your style differ from hers?
Sally and I have worked together for the past seven years, so I don’t see this as a departure as much as an evolution. I am extremely proud of the work we have done together. In the next few years, as we complete the capital project, my focus is to continue to build on and strengthen the Museum’s commitment to being a resource and community partner for many of our constituents. I’m especially excited to build these precincts ahead of reopening and to make the Museum more accessible through our physical factory and by expanding interdisciplinary and intergenerational programming.
What are some of the big projects you will be tackling in the coming years?
The biggest thing we’re dealing with is the final phase of our capital project, scheduled for completion in 2029. It’s a huge moment for the museum. This will include the addition of the SONA Children’s Museum, a Noguchi-inspired artist theater scene at Flushing Meadows Corona Park and a dedicated space for seniors, which will allow us to deepen our commitment to intergenerational engagement.
Currently there is the Noguchi Museum Great gallery About all the projects he wanted to do for New York, many of which were stadiums. Why was he drawn to this type of structure, and what did he add to his designs?
The Noguchi Museum exhibition highlights how important stadiums were to his artistic practice and vision. The playground was not a side project for him, but rather an expression of what sculpture can do in public life. He imagined stadiums as civic sculptures integrated into the fabric of the city, where sculpture becomes architecture and architecture becomes a lived experience. The play scene at the Sona Children’s Museum is an extension of this legacy.
You first worked with this museum in 2002. What has changed most about it since then?
When I joined the Queens Museum in 2002, we were a much smaller institution, both physically and programmatically. The museum was deeply rooted in the community until then, but our ability to serve Queens in all its complexity has expanded dramatically over the past two decades. One of the most visible changes has been our capital transformation. An expansion and building renovation in 2013 allowed us to open the museum in a way that feels more welcoming and embraces our role as supporters and responsive neighbors. We have built long-term partnerships with local organizations, artists and residents, and these relationships shape our programming at every level.
Since then, she has also held positions at the State Department in Boston and Lincoln Center. What would you say you learned at these other institutions?
The time I spent at the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston and at Lincoln Center was very rewarding. These two institutions have taught me a lot about how to balance artistic excellence with wide-ranging institutional complexities, especially around diverse audiences. However, I have worked at the Queens Museum for more than 20 years, and much of my leadership has been forged here, in this building, with this team and the communities we serve.
Although it hosts cutting-edge contemporary exhibitions, the Queens Museum also serves as a community hub. As a long-time Queens resident, how do you plan to balance these different requirements?
As someone who grew up in Queens, I’m keenly aware that people come to the museum for different reasons. Some come to a specific artist. Others because it is a welcoming place to spend time. Presenting ambitious contemporary art is part of serving our community; Queens residents demand the same rigor, experimentation, and critical inquiry as audiences in Brooklyn or Manhattan. Being a community-focused organization means we think about everything from our teaching aids in Spanish and English to the public programs and partnerships we build around the fair. My role is to ensure that these experiences reinforce each other and that our exhibitions and community engagement are in dialogue.
What are some of your favorite exhibitions that the Queens Museum has mounted in recent years?
There are so many to choose from! Exhibitions representing the history of the site and works in our collections, such as our current exhibition, come to mind.Who We Are: American Imagination“, which is curated by three members of the Queens community. There are also special exhibits highlighting the history of the borough and its residents, such as “Alisa Nissenbaum: Queens, Lindo and KeridS. “I also love the legacy we have of giving so many artists their first major museum exhibitions, and dedicating our Grand Wall to female-identifying artists like Carolyn Kent In addition to important professional surveys including “Merle Laderman Ukeles: The Art of Conservation“.
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