College Names New Gallery Director

Moore College of Art & Design is pleased to announce the appointment of Lorie Mertes as the Rochelle F. Levy Director/Chief Curator of the Galleries at Moore College of Art & Design. Mertes, who assumed the post March 5, has more than fifteen years of curatorial experience with a focus on international art of the 20th and 21st centuries. In addition, she has a demonstrated commitment to education, community outreach, program development and supporting the work of emerging and under-recognized artists.

“I am delighted that Lorie Mertes is leading the Galleries,” says Happy Fernandez, President of Moore. “They are a vital part of the College, supporting Moore’s role as a preeminent educational and cultural institution.  I know Lorie’s extensive professional experience will bring new perspective and creative energy to the Gallery’s mission, as well as its role as a collaborative partner in launching Moore’s new curatorial studies major, the first and only undergraduate program of its kind in the nation.”  

As curator of The Galleries at Moore, Mertes will develop the exhibitions and programs for the Goldie Paley and the Levy Galleries, highlighting respectively national and international contemporary artists and emerging and established artists and arts organizations in Philadelphia. In addition, Mertes will be responsible for related educational programs, community outreach and scholarly publications, as well as overseeing the programming in Moore’s offsite exhibition spaces at the Kimmel Center and Lincoln Financial Field.

“I am excited about joining Moore,” says Mertes, “and I look forward to contributing to the dialogue on contemporary art in Philadelphia, as well as exploring the unique opportunities for creating synergy between the College’s academic program and the Galleries through the presentation of dynamic exhibitions and educational offerings.”

Prior to joining Moore, Mertes served as Director of The Fabric Workshop and Museum from June to December 2006 where she oversaw the installation of exhibitions by Paul Chan and Jean Shin, as well as curating “Process and Collaboration: Celebrating Twelve Years at 1315 Cherry Street” including such artists as Marina Abromovic, Leonardo Drew, Jim Hodges, Laura Owens, and Lorna Simpson.

Before coming to Philadelphia, Mertes was Assistant Director for Special Projects/Curator at The Miami Art Museum (MAM). A member of MAM’s curatorial and senior staff from 1994 to 2006, Mertes contributed to the museum’s overall growth and transition from a kunsthalle to a collecting museum focusing on international art of the 20th and 21st centuries. At MAM, Mertes curated twenty-two exhibitions and special projects including: Vik Muniz’s “Cloud Cloud” (2006) skywriting project; “marking time: moving images” (2005) featuring installations by Dara Friedman, Felix Gonzalez-Torres, Ann Hamilton, Alfredo Jaar, Paul Pfeiffer, and Bill Viola; and Ann Hamilton’s site-specific installation “mantle” (1998) that consisted of 40,000 fresh flowers on a 48-ft long table, short-wave radio transmissions and a live attendant sewing together wool coats. Additional curated exhibitions include: James Rosenquist (2006); Shahzia Sikander (2005); Russell Crotty (2004); Janine Antoni and Paul Ramírez-Jonas (2003); Jim Hodges (1999); and Lisa Roberts (1999). In addition to organizing exhibitions and related education programs, Mertes served as the editor of “Converge”, the museum’s bi-annual publication. She has been a member of the American Association of Museums since 1997.

About The Galleries at Moore
For the past twenty years, the Galleries at Moore have presented a diverse range of exhibitions offering insights into the work of established and emerging artists, as well as providing a forum for exploring contemporary issues and ideas. As part of the programming offered in The Goldie Paley Gallery featuring the work of national and international artists, The International Discovery Series has featured the first US presentations of such artists as Artur Barrio, VALIE EXPORT, Terry Fox, Jörg Immendorff, and Roman Singer. As venues serving America’s only art and design college for women, the Gallery has also presented exhibitions by such significant women artists and designers as Jo Baer, Janet Biggs, Dara Birnbaum, Mary Cassatt, Jay DeFeo, Viola Frey, Marlene Dumas, Jacqueline Matisse, Alice Neel, Karen Kilimnick, Carolee Schneemann and Hannah Wilke.

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