Members Exclusive Visioning the Future of the Museum – MFA Director Matthew Teitelbaum

Matthew Teitelbaum served as Ann and Graham Gund Director of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston (MFA), from August 2015 until 30 June, 2025, when he was succeeded by Pierre Terjanian, the MFA Boston’s Chief of Curatorial and Conservation. Under his leadership, the Museum, which was founded in 1876, has introduced new initiatives, programs, and partnerships to invite, welcome, and engage diverse audiences and build a more inclusive community of visitors, staff, volunteers, and supporters. As Director, he has demonstrated a strengthened commitment to building and presenting the collection, creating new galleries for Dutch and Flemish art; ancient Greek, Roman, and Byzantine art; Italian Renaissance art; Egyptian art from the Middle Kingdom; the jewelry collection; and the Judaica collection. These projects are rooted in a dedication to promoting extraordinary care for the MFA’s collection, realised most recently by the dedication of a new Conservation Center.

Teitelbaum has focused on the future of museums and grounding the MFA as an institution that is resilient and forward-looking in complex times. The MFA was the first museum in the United States to employ a curator of provenance – leading to the creation of a provenance department. He also established standalone departments for photography and for prints and drawings, and hired new curatorial roles, such as the Linde Curator of Folk and Self-Taught Art, the Chair and Teel Curator of Art of Global Africa, and the Assistant Curator of Islamic Art, deepening the Museum’s engagement with audiences through global narratives. These advancements are bolstered by the establishment of MFA Pathways, a comprehensive undergraduate paid internship program.

Prior to his appointment at the MFA, Teitelbaum served as the Michael and Sonja Koerner Director and CEO of the Art Gallery of Ontario in Toronto. A scholar of contemporary, European and Canadian art, he holds a Bachelor of Arts with honors in Canadian history from Carleton University; a Master of Philosophy in modern European painting and sculpture from the Courtauld Institute of Art, London; and an honorary Doctor of Laws from Queen’s University. Teitelbaum has been honored with the Chevalier des Arts et des Lettres by the French government for his ongoing commitment and contributions to the arts; the RCA Medal from the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts for his outstanding support to the development of the visual arts in Canada; the Canadian Centre for Diversity’s Human Relations Award; and the Museum of Contemporary Canadian Art (MOCCA) Award for arts leadership. In 2019, he was appointed as a Member of the Order of Canada, the country’s highest civilian honor, which recognises individuals who make extraordinary contributions to the nation.