NEW YORK, NY.- The Rubin Museum of Art has hired Daneyal Mahmood, currently the Director of Visual Programming at the Watermill Center, as Director of Exhibitions.

In this role, Mahmood will shape and oversee the Rubin Museum’s exhibitions and annual themes, collaborating with the curatorial and design staff and driving strategies for innovative exhibitions, greater and deeper audience engagement, and impactful, memorable experiences.

“Daneyal is inspiring in his intellectual freshness and does not shy away from experimental exploration,” said Jorrit Britschgi, Executive Director. “As we move toward even broader public engagement, his unique career background and conceptual approach will ensure that the Rubin Museum creates bold and meaningful exhibitions.”

Mahmood has followed a unique career path that combines entrepreneurship, arts administration, clinical psychology research, and leadership. Mahmood joins the Museum following Britschgi’s recent appointment as Executive Director in December and the launch of the Rubin’s first annual theme, “The Future,” in February. His role has been reimagined for audience growth.

“The Rubin has no other counterpart in the city; by mixing a permanent collection with contemporary art, psychology, and Buddhist philosophy, there are endless possibilities to create something that other institutions simply can’t offer,” Mahmood said. “I look forward to developing exhibitions that are conceptual, that expand the sourcing of exhibition materials, and that speak to the contemporary human condition. My background in psychology has definitely influenced the way I see art and my expectations for what an exhibition should do.”

In addition to holding a PhD in experimental psychology, Mahmood has extensive experience producing exhibitions and visual arts programming. As Director of Visual Programming for the Watermill Center, he curated and produced artist talks, panel discussions, and led the Maren Otto Fellowship program. He was also the founder and director of Daneyal Mahmood Gallery in New York, curating exhibitions and providing a platform for politically and culturally significant art from around the world, and the director of Kashya Hildebrand Gallery, developing exhibitions of works by Asian, Southeast Asian, and Middle Eastern artists. He also served as a research psychologist for the National Development Research Institute, studying psychological components of addiction. He received his PhD from the New School for Social Research, and his work has been published in many academic journals and publications. He begins work at the Rubin Museum in late August 2018.