Tim Griffin, The Kitchen's Director and Chief Curator, Steps Down

The Kitchen has announced that its director and chief curator, Tim Griffin, will be stepping down from the position at the end of this year.

During his tenure, Griffin organized with The Kitchen team significant projects by artists including Chantal Akerman, ANOHNI, Charles Atlas, Gretchen Bender, Abraham Cruzvillegas, Ralph Lemon, Aki Sasamoto, and Tyshawn Sorey, among many others, in addition to thematic exhibitions such as "From Minimalism into Algorithm." The organization also developed new initiatives and programs including "The Kitchen L.A.B.," an interdisciplinary discussion series which keyed thematic seasons since 2012; and the electronic music series "Synth Nights." Following the spread of COVID-19, the organization also launched The Kitchen Broadcast and revised its residencies to operate with a TV studio model.

During the past two years, Griffin has focused on fundraising in anticipation of The Kitchen's 50th anniversary in 2021 and the anticipated renovation of its building on 19th Street in Chelsea. The organization has raised approximately $11 million heading into a special benefit exhibition, "Ice and Fire," which is curated by Kitchen board members Wade Guyton and Jacqueline Humphries and opens on October 1.

Griffin will continue as an advisor to ensure a smooth transition and on 50th anniversary initiatives, while taking a position as Visiting Associate Professor in the departments of Art History and English at the Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio. His wife, Johanna Burton, is director of the Wexner Center for the Arts.

The Kitchen Chair of the Board Greg Feldman says: "All of us at The Kitchen express our gratitude to Tim for his remarkable leadership during the past decade as both a visionary curator and fundraiser, and at a key point in The Kitchen's history."

"I can't imagine a more inspiring or humbling experience among artists than what The Kitchen, and its dedicated staff and board, has offered me over the years," Griffin reflects. "Few places have such a history, decade after decade, of presenting the unexpected. Even fewer have people so deeply committed every day to supporting artists' innovative work, and who, time and again, manage to pull it off whatever the challenges. It's an honor to have been part of The Kitchen, and to have been part of an incredible effort to evolve and sustain the organization for the decades to come."

A search for Griffin's successor is being conducted by Isaacson Miller.

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