New Executive Director for the Museo de Arte de Ponce

With an outstanding museum career, Deborah L. Roldán, currently a Deputy Director at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, will assume the directorship of the Ponce Museum at a key moment in its history.

 

Ponce, Puerto Rico (August 9, 2024) – The Board of Trustees of the Luis A. Ferré Foundation has announced the appointment of Deborah L. Roldán as the new Executive Director of the Museo de Arte de Ponce. Deborah, who has vast experience in the management of museums and national and international exhibitions, was selected to lead the Ponce institution amid the ambitious project to repair its main building and other initiatives that seek to strengthen the presence of the Museo de Arte de Ponce in international and local spheres.

 

After conducting a thorough search in the United States and Puerto Rico, the Museum selected Deborah for her experience and leadership, as well as her fresh and innovative vision for the Museum. Of Puerto Rican grandparents, specifically from the municipalities of Ponce and San Juan, Deborah has over thirty years of professional experience. In her most recent role as Chief Exhibitions Officer and Deputy Director for Curatorial Affairs at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, Texas, she collaborated with a dozen curatorial departments, overseeing diverse management areas of budget and project implementation. Prior to her roles in Houston, she gained a decade of experience in Spain as a curator and exhibitions coordinator, as well as an art consultant, at renowned institutions such as the Museo Nacional del Prado and Fundación Juan March, Madrid, and the Museo Picasso Malaga. Deborah began her career in New York City – where she is from originally – as a Senior Press Officer at the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

 

As part of her academic background, Deborah holds a B.A. in Arts Administration from Baruch College of the City University of New York, and an M.A. in Art History from Hunter College. She completed her doctoral courses and exams in Art History at New York University’s Institute of Fine Arts.

 

Deborah’s experience will allow the Museum to expand its reach and establish new international collaborations. Her connection with the Puerto Rican diaspora will be instrumental in strengthening ties with this community abroad.

 

“We are very excited about Deborah’s addition to the Museo de Arte de Ponce team,” mentioned María Luisa Ferré Rangel, President of the Board of Trustees of the Luis A. Ferré Foundation. “Her innovative approach and ability to connect with different audiences will be of great value in this moment of transformation at the Museum. Likewise, her heritage ties to Ponce and vast experience in the international museum field, including major art institutions around the world, add exceptional value to our efforts”, she added.

 

Antonio Luis Ferré Rangel, member of the Board of Trustees and of the Search Committee for the position, added that “with Deborah as Executive Director of the Museo de Arte de Ponce we have a person of great leadership who I am sure will contribute significantly to strengthen our exhibitions and educational programs. That will undoubtedly be of great benefit to our communities in Puerto Rico as well as new audiences abroad”.

 

About this new role, Deborah commented, “It is indeed an honor to be appointed Executive Director of the renowned Museo de Arte de Ponce, and an extraordinary culmination of my many years in the museum world in the U.S. and Spain. I look forward to working with the Museum’s stellar team and its celebrated collections and continuing their exceptional work. It is a rare opportunity to be able to return to the land of one’s grandparents and contribute to the cultural landscape and I consider it an absolute privilege”.

 

Deborah will formally assume her duties in September 2024. Her appointment coincides with the repair process that the Edward Durell Stone Building is currently undergoing, as a result of the 2020 earthquakes. In this regard, she indicated that “when this building opened in 1965, nearly 60 years ago, it was a beacon of art and culture not only in Puerto Rico, but in the Caribbean and beyond. That reputation remains intact and is alive and well and the recent damage will not deter that mission. I am eager to continue with the Museum’s restoration and to enable its success well into the next century”.

 

Deborah’s selection was the culmination of a competitive nationwide search for an Executive Director led by Arts Consulting Group (ACG), hired by the Museo de Arte de Ponce’s Board to recruit its new leader.

 

ABOUT MUSEO DE ARTE DE PONCE

Founded in 1959 by Luis A. Ferré, the Museo de Arte de Ponce is a non-profit organization dedicated to the collection, conservation, study and exhibition of works of art. With a permanent collection of more than 4,000 objects, the Museum is a cultural icon in the Caribbean. For more information about the Museo de Arte de Ponce, please contact the Museum at 787-840-1510 or write to info@museoarteponce.org.