Champaign, IL (April 2, 2026) — Stephanie Smith has been named the new director of Krannert Art Museum at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.
Smith brings more than a decade of museum leadership experience, a national reputation for excellence in contemporary art and museum practice, and a capacity for guiding museums with both vision and stability. She currently serves as an independent curator and arts consultant based in Chicago and is a 2025–2026 visiting fellow at the University of Chicago’s Neubauer Collegium for Culture and Society.
Previously, Smith served as interim director of the Smart Museum of Art at the University of Chicago, where she provided steady leadership during an extended transition period. In that role, she oversaw a $4.5 million budget, strengthened relationships with donors and advisory bodies, secured institutional support to address capital needs and stabilize finances, and positioned the museum for its next phase of leadership.
Jake Pinholster, Dean of the College of Fine and Applied Arts, celebrates her hire: “Stephanie Smith brings a dynamic vision to Krannert Art Museum, one that embraces both artistic excellence and meaningful community engagement. As a critical anchor for our cities and region, the museum plays a vital role on campus and beyond. I am confident her leadership will foster deeper connections between art and the audiences we serve.”
“At their best, university art museums connect powerful art, nuanced ideas, and a wide range of people. That's what drew me to this role, alongside this university's public mission and a sense of homecoming as a Midwesterner,” Smith noted. “I look forward to exploring one core question with staff, students, faculty, neighbors, and others who love this museum: what can Krannert Art Museum uniquely contribute to its local communities and the wider field? Together, we’ll build on deep existing strengths and develop new capacities that meet this moment.”
Earlier in her career, Smith spent more than a decade at the Smart Museum in progressive curatorial and leadership roles, ultimately serving as deputy director and chief curator. She was inaugural chief curator and part of the team that launched the new Institute for Contemporary Art at Virginia Commonwealth University. She was also chief curator at the Art Gallery of Ontario in Toronto—one of the largest art museums in North America.
A respected curator, writer, and lecturer, she is widely known for her scholarship and leadership in socially engaged contemporary art. Her exhibitions and publications have earned national and international recognition, including the prestigious Emily Hall Tremaine Exhibition Award for Feast: Radical Hospitality in Contemporary Art. She remains active in research, teaching, and public engagement, and currently holds an appointment as adjunct assistant professor at the University of Illinois Chicago. Smith is also a member of the collective Hase’, which works closely with the Awi’nakola Foundation; both are based on Vancouver Island in Canada.
Smith earned her MA in art history and BA in history and art/art history from Rice University and completed the Getty Foundation’s Museum Leadership Institute executive program.
Smith will relocate from the Chicago area to begin her appointment on May 25, 2026, pending approval by the University of Illinois Board of Trustees. Her directorship follows that of Jon Seydl, who left the museum in 2025 to join the Allen Memorial Museum of Art at Oberlin College, and Peter Mortensen’s service as the interim director.
Media Contact
Evelyn C. Shapiro, esha@illinois.edu, (217) 300-3042
Photo by Rachel Herman
