MARFA, TX.- Ballroom Marfa announced the appointment of its new Executive Director, Laura Creed. Creed joins Ballroom Marfa, the West Texas contemporary arts institution, from LAXART, where she served as director of development since 2017. Creed will join Ballroom Marfa in April of 2020 and will work closely with the current team and the Board of Trustees to support the organization’s mission and expand its programming beyond Texas.

“I am overjoyed to be leading such a dynamic institution as it nears its 20th year” says Creed. “Ballroom has a unique identity that allows it a certain freedom and agility—which is essential at a time when cultural institutions are being questioned and reconsidered. Since its beginning, Ballroom has had an enviable track record of mounting shows that promote inclusivity and diversity. In this way, Ballroom rounds out the landscape by championing work by women, artists of color, and the LGBTQ+ community. I look forward to strengthening this spirit and further establishing Ballroom as a beacon in West Texas.”

For the past 18 years, Creed has been committed to making art accessible to a wide and diverse audience. Her extensive experience both in the US and abroad will allow Ballroom to continue setting new standards in programming to serve new communities and to support the work of both emerging and recognized artists and musicians working in all media.

Prior to LAXART, Creed acted as an independent consultant for various nonprofits and foundations including The Mistake Room in Los Angeles, Desert X, and Thyssen-Bornemisza Art Contemporary in Vienna, Austria. In addition to her consulting work, Creed has held development and curatorial positions at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles, the Kenneth Armitage Foundation in London, and spent five years in museum education in Philadelphia at the Philadelphia Museum of Art and the Barnes Foundation.

“We are ecstatic to have Laura Creed lead Ballroom Marfa into the future. With more than 18 years of experience in the art world, Laura is a proven leader who will bring a strong vision to this new chapter in our history” says Ballroom Marfa Co-Founder and Artistic Director Fairfax Dorn. “LAXART and Ballroom share a similar ethos of engaging contemporary public issues and new audiences and we feel very fortunate to have Laura on board to drive our mission forward.”