Dr. Jessica Levin Martinez has been appointed the next president and executive director of the Corning Museum of Glass.
Martinez, who currently directs the Herbert F. Johnson Museum of Art at Cornell University, will succeed Dr. Karol Wight, who announced her retirement in April 2025.
Martinez will assume her role at CMoG on Feb. 2, 2026, the CMoG Board of Trustees announced Oct. 16.
“Martinez is passionate about museums and what it takes for a museum to connect with audiences,” said CMoG Board Chair Dr. Jeff Evenson. “She possesses a spirit of bold experimentation that approaches the museum broadly as an innovation laboratory, not as a temple.”
Evenson said the Board’s Search Committee undertook a rigorous months-long process to find the ideal candidate, and strongly believes that Martinez is the perfect fit for the Museum.
“As we enter our 75th anniversary year, I am confident that she will build on Karol’s outstanding legacy, making CMoG’s future even brighter,” Evenson said.
Martinez joined the Herbert F. Johnson Museum of Art at Cornell University in 2019. Martinez said directing the Corning Museum of Glass, an institution she has “long admired,” is an honor.
“The institution’s mission to transform the way the world understands the art, history, and science of glass on a global scale resonates deeply with my own experiences,” Martinez said. “I look forward to joining this remarkable team of dedicated professionals who, like the glass artists who push the boundaries of the medium, advance museum practice with real ingenuity.
“It will be a privilege to bring forward Karol Wight’s brilliant contributions to the Corning Museum of Glass and to the field of art museums more broadly.”
Wight, the current CMoG president and executive director, said Martinez is an energetic, collaborative leader with deep expertise in the museum field and a true appreciation for its purpose.
“Her regional arts experience, along with her strong curatorial and research background, will serve her well as she steps into the leadership role at CMoG,” Wight said.
Martinez has built a reputation as a leading advocate for museum-based interdisciplinary teaching with global collections. This area of expertise began at the Harvard Art Museums, where she served as the Director of Academic and Public Programs.
She led programs training students to design public tours and teach in secondary schools, and for postdoctoral fellows in museum practice; helped establish an Art Study Center to make items from the collections accessible to the public; and taught museum courses and lectured on African art at various museums and universities.
Martinez also concurrently served as a research curator of African art initiatives at Harvard. Martinez received the Harvard Hero award in 2017 for exceptional contributions to the University.
She earned her doctorate in the history of art and architecture from Harvard University in 2004. She later travelled to Prague and Slovakia to investigate the provenance of Nazi-looted artwork. Returning to the US, she became an educator and administrator at the Smithsonian National Museum of African Art prior to joining Harvard Art Museums.
CMoG is the foremost authority on the art, history and science of glass. It is home to the world’s most important collection of glass, including the finest examples of glassmaking spanning 3,500 years.
This article originally appeared on The Leader: CMoG names new president and executive director. What to know about Jessica Levin Martinez
Reporting by Jeff Smith, Corning Leader / The Leader
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
