OKLAHOMA CITY, OK.- The Oklahoma Contemporary Arts Center Board of Trustees announced the appointment of Trent Riley as its new executive director. Riley most recently served as Oklahoma Contemporary’s chief development officer. He is widely recognized for strategic leadership positions in arts development, membership engagement and community involvement and comes to his role of executive director with an impressive financial track record. Riley’s vision includes a renewed emphasis on mission, financial growth and providing contemporary art experiences to local, regional and national audiences. Riley holds a master’s degree in public history with an emphasis in museum studies and has written numerous articles for magazines and journals about art, history and culture.
“Trent’s successful tenure as chief development officer at Oklahoma Contemporary and deep roots in the culture of Oklahoma made him standout from an impressive field of candidates,” said Molly Tolbert, president of the board of trustees. “Our board is especially confident that Trent’s collaborative style and advancement expertise will help our state’s leading arts center fulfill its mission to encourage artistic expression through education, exhibitions and performance.”
Riley is a fifth-generation Oklahoman, his family residing in the state since before statehood. His grandfather was instrumental in the creation of the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum, where Riley held various leadership positions for nearly a decade before joining Oklahoma Contemporary in 2022. Riley lives in Oklahoma City with his family and is well known for contributing to Oklahoma City’s cultural renaissance over the last decade through his work in arts and culture administration.
“With arts education in schools at a critical point in society—and contemporary art the language of our time— our mission has never been more important,” said Trent Riley. “At Oklahoma Contemporary, we have one of the most engaged and exciting arts campuses in the region, and I look forward to working with the staff, board and community partners to elevate its impact.”
“We are extremely happy that Trent has accepted the top position at Oklahoma Contemporary,” said founder and chairman Christian Keesee. “Trent consistently exceeded our expectations. His genuine commitment to arts education and the culture of our state made him an excellent candidate for this position. We congratulate him and look forward to working with Trent as this exciting new chapter at Oklahoma Contemporary begins to unfold.”
For more than a decade at the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum, as a major gifts officer and membership manager, Riley helped generate more than $30 million in support of annual operations, capital improvements and special projects. A recognized writer and editor, his edited volume Drawing Fire: A Pawnee, Artist, and Thunderbird in World War II (University Press of Kansas, 2019) received favorable reviews from The Wall Street Journal and Publishers Weekly and was a finalist for the Oklahoma Book Awards. Riley is passionate about arts and humanities education, has taught at the college level and is currently a board member for the Oklahoma Arts Institute Foundation. He assumed his role as executive director of Oklahoma Contemporary Arts Center on May 1, 2024.
