Linda C. Harrison is no stranger to the power of self-expression. That’s just one reason she accepted her role as the Newark Museum of Art’s director and CEO over six years ago, which positioned her as one of the few African-Americans leading a major art museum. “[The museum] is 115 years old now, and the 12th largest in the country in terms of our collections—we have over 300,000 objects,” she tells Bazaar. “But what’s distinct about it is that the museum was discovered and founded by John Cotton Dana, who said this was going to be a museum for the people.” Throughout his career as a curator and librarian, Dana championed the idea that museums and libraries should be accessible to everyone, not just the upper classes.
After transitioning from her role leading the Museum of the African Diaspora in San Francisco, Harrison unveiled a foundational three-year plan at what was then known simply as the Newark Museum in 2019, to assist the institution in becoming more inviting to the residents of the New Jersey city. She not only added “of Art” to the museum’s title, but also overhauled its campus and gardens to spark interest in the institution.
“We want people to just feel that they can pause and sit and have joy,” she says of the revamp. “A lot of times when you have a city or an area that becomes 70 to 80 percent Black, brown people, immigrants, it’s always so hard. And you don’t always get a chance to have the joy and experience the joy—kids or adults. We want to be that kind of place where you can trust being at the museum, but it doesn’t have to be complicated for you. That’s part of the thinking here, that it’s a deeper transformation, not just a physical one.” Harrison’s restructuring efforts and prioritization of inclusive and accessible art throughout the year have shifted the institution’s mission back to its founder’s original intention of offering the utmost accessibility.