History of the Philadelphia Museum of Art: Directors and Departments

The PMA archives has many records related to its directors through the years. You can click on the names below to view the relevant finding aid:

William Platt Pepper: 1877–1879 (at the University of Pennsylvania)

Dalton Dorr: 1879–1899

Edwin Atlee Barber: 1897–1916

Langdon Warner: 1917–1923

Samuel Woodhouse Jr.: 1923–1925/1927

Fiske Kimball: 1925–1955

Henri Gabriel Marceau: 1955–1964

Evan Turner: 1964–1978

Arnold Jolles: 1977–1979

Jean Sutherland Boggs: 1978–1982

Anne d’Harnoncourt: 1982–1996/1997–2008 (Director/Director and CEO)

Gail Harrity: 2008–2009 (interim CEO)

Timothy Rub: 2009–2022

Sasha Suda: 2023–Present

Our curatorial departments have changed names, merged, and separated through the years. Records are often split between several finding aids. 

• American Art department, please consult:
  • American Art Department Records
  • American Decorative Arts Department Records
  • Decorative Arts Department Records
• European Decorative Arts department, please consult:
  • Decorative Arts Department Records
  • European Decorative Arts after 1700 Department Records
  • European Decorative Arts before 1700 Department Records
  • Dutch Tiles Records
  • Medieval Art Department Records
  • George Grey Barnard Papers
• East Asian Art department, please consult:
  • East Asian Art Department Records
  • Far Eastern Art Department Records
• Costume and Textiles department, please consult:
  • Costume and Textiles Department Records
• South Asian Art department, please consult:
  • Indian Art Department Records
  • Indian and Himalayan Art Department Records
  • Stella Kramrisch papers
• European painting department, please consult:
  • European Painting and Sculpture Department Records
  • Henri Gabriel Marceau Curatorial Records
  • Johnson Collection Curatorial Records
  • John G. Johnson Papers
  • Painting and Sculpture Department Records
  • Henry Clifford Records
  • Étant donnés Curatorial Records
  • Marcel Duchamp Exhibition Records
  • Marcel Duchamp Research Collection
• Prints, Drawings, and Photographs department, please consult:
  • Prints, Drawings, and Photographs Department Records
  • Prints Department Records
  • Carl Zigrosser Collection
• Contemporary Art department, please consult:
  • Contemporary Art Department Records
  • Modern and Contemporary Art Department Records
  • Twentieth Century Art Department Records

If you are interested in researching our support departments, including conservation and education, please consult the appropriate finding aid.

• Administration/Services Records

• Archives Department Records

• Archives Reference Files

• Audio Visual Department Records

• Buildings Department Records

• Community Programs and Urban Outreach Records

• Conservation and Technical Research Collection

• Conservation Department Records

• Development (transitional) Department Records

• Development and Membership Department Records

• Development Department Records

• Editorial and Graphic Design Department Photographs

• Education Division Records

• Exhibition Design Department Records

• External Affairs Department Records

• Facilities and Operations Department Records

• Information Services Department Records

• Library Records

• Marketing and Public Relations Department Records

• Photography Department Records

• Public Relations Department Records

• Publications Department Records

• Records of Administration/Management

• Rights and Reproductions Photograph Collection

• Special Exhibitions Department Records

• Volunteer Services Department Records