The board of the Serpentine Galleries in London – famous for organising the architectural Serpentine Pavilion programme – has announced the appointment of entrepreneur Yana Peel as the organisation’s new CEO, in place of departing director Julia Peyton-Jones.
Peel, previously a trustee at the galleries, is the co-founder of the Outset Contemporary Art Fund and CEO of live debate forum Intelligence Squared.
In her new role, she will work alongside Serpentine artistic director Hans Ulrich Obrist to develop new programmes and audiences for the museums and organise the pavilion programme, which is hosted every year in London’s Kensington Gardens since being founded by Peyton-Jones in 2000.
The project presents the work of an international architect or design team who have not completed a building in the UK at the time of invitation.
Architects including Herzog & de Meuron, Jean Nouvel, Sou Fujimoto and the late Zaha Hadid designed leisure pavilions for the event over the years. From 10 June – 9 October 2016,
Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG) will showcase a sculptural fibreglass installation described as an “unzipped wall”.Architects Kunlé Adeyemi, Barkow Leibinger, Asif Khan and Yona Friedman will create summer houses surrounding the BIG pavilion.
In a statement reflecting on her appointment, Peel said: “I am thrilled to be taking on the leadership of the Serpentine, an institution that I have admired and been involved with for so long. I am fully committed to making the most exciting art and ideas of our time accessible to the broadest audiences.”
Serpentine Galleries chair, and former New York mayor, Michael Bloomberg said: “The Serpentine has a well-earned reputation for embracing new and exciting ideas, and I am confident that Yana’s and Hans Ulrich’s bold new leadership will enable us to continue pushing new boundaries for contemporary artists and audiences.”
Ulrich added: “I am totally committed to continuing to make the Serpentine the place where artists want to work most and to be able to present our programme in ever new formats and to wider audiences.”
The Serpentine Galleries also announced the appointment of artist Lynette Yiadom-Boakye and Goldman Sachs vice chair Mike Sherwood as new trustees.
