New Dallas Museum of Art Director Brian Ferriso [Photo: Owen Carey]

The Dallas Museum of Art has named Brian Ferriso, longtime director of the Portland Art Museum, as its next director. Ferriso will become the Eugene McDermott Director of the DMA beginning Dec. 1.

Ferriso brings nearly 30 years of museum leadership experience to Dallas and currently serves as director of PAM, where he has led the institution through strategic expansion, capital growth, and a renewed commitment to access and community engagement.

DMA Board President Gowri Natarajan Sharma said Ferriso stood out for his track record in sustainable growth, civic programming, and campaign leadership.

“Brian Ferriso is a leader with a proven track record in realizing successful capital campaigns and sustainable organizational growth,” Sharma said in a statement. “He has shaped an ambitious vision for the Portland Art Museum and developed programs that advance its cultural, civic, and social role in the city and region.”

Sharma added that Ferriso is well-positioned to lead the DMA into “its next era as a thriving institution” with a growing, more inclusive, and community-reflective collection.

Ferriso to join during a “transformational moment”

In a statement, Ferriso called the DMA “the perfect place” to continue his work integrating museums more deeply into the civic and cultural fabric of cities.

“The Museum is at an inflection point, with an impressive legacy behind it and a new future ahead,” Ferriso said. “I feel lucky to join at such a transformative moment and am excited to work hand-in-hand with the Museum’s dedicated staff and Board—as well as City leaders, stakeholders, and the public—to help shape the evolving vision for the DMA.”

Growing funding, staff, and diversity of artists

Ferriso has served as director of the Portland Art Museum since 2006. During his tenure, he more than doubled the museum’s curatorial staff and permanently endowed nearly half of those positions. He also eliminated $7 million in unfunded debt and increased the museum’s endowment by $40 million.

He established the museum’s Art Access Endowment, which funds free admission for children under 17, free school tours, and family free days. That effort, along with broader outreach programs, reflects his focus on accessibility and equity.

Ferriso also led a push to diversify the museum’s permanent collection, with an emphasis on acquiring works by women artists, as well as Native American, Black, and other historically underrepresented creators. As part of that work, he expanded engagement with Native American communities by creating a new assistant curator of Native American art position, adding Native American representation to the museum’s board, and establishing a Native American Advisory Committee to help guide programming and exhibitions.

He is currently overseeing PAM’s $140 million expansion and renovation project, which opens to the public on November 20. Designed in partnership by Portland-based Hennebery Eddy Architects and Chicago’s Vinci Hamp Architects, the reimagined museum connects two historic buildings and adds nearly 100,000 square feet of new gallery and public space.

Before joining PAM, Ferriso served as director of the Philbrook Museum of Art in Tulsa, and held senior curatorial leadership roles at the Milwaukee Art Museum and the Smart Museum of Art at the University of Chicago.

Selecting a leader to drive the DMA’s next chapter

Sharon Young, board chair and co-chair of the DMA’s executive search committee, said Ferriso quickly rose to the top of a competitive pool of candidates.

“He comes fully equipped with learnings and know-how from the capital project he led in Portland, which will be a tremendous asset as he advances the DMA’s own transformation,” Young said in the announcement.

She thanked interim director Tamara Wootton Forsyth, the DMA board, and the search committee for guiding the museum through its interim period and preparing for its next chapter.

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