KATONAH, NY.- Board president Deborah Mullin and the Board of Trustees of the Katonah Museum of Art announced the appointment of Michael Gitlitz as the museum’s new executive director. With more than twenty-five years in the art world at Hirschl & Adler Galleries, Hirschl & Adler Modern, Marlborough Gallery and Paddle8, Gitlitz brings an encyclopedic knowledge of art as well as a broad network of artists, curators and collectors to the museum. In addition, his roots in northern Westchester where he has lived for many years have fostered a deep appreciation for the KMA’s identity and audience.

Mullin said, “We are thrilled to welcome Michael who has the perfect expertise, energy and professional background for the Katonah Museum of Art. His experience and vision will support the KMA’s mission to promote the visual arts to our diverse community. He appreciates the value of the KMA as a cultural center for art and creative thinking. We are confident that Michael’s leadership style will resonate in the community and beyond. He is committed to strengthening ties with our neighbors and with our wider artistic community. Explains Gitlitz, “The KMA is a unique institution with an extraordinary legacy of offering world-class art exhibitions while also serving as an intimate nexus for community engagement. My family lives not far from the museum and we have always thought of the KMA as a great asset to the area. I am thrilled to be able to work with such a talented and committed staff, board and group of advisors and volunteers.”

Gitlitz earned his Bachelor of Arts from Oberlin College in 1991 including studies at the Scuola Lorenzo de Medici and Scuola Dante Alighieri in Florence, Italy, the Middlebury College Language Schools in Middlebury, VT, and University College, London. In 1992, Mr. Gitlitz received a Post-Graduate Diploma in the Fine and Decorative Arts from Sotheby’s Institute, London. From 1993 to 2001, he handled American and European works of art from the 17th to the 21st centuries for Hirschl & Adler Galleries’ international clientele of private collectors, dealers and public institutions. While there, he curated and wrote catalogues for numerous exhibitions, while unearthing both old and new masterworks as well as artists’ estates. In 2001 he was named director of Hirschl & Adler Modern and from 2001 to 2015 he was a director at Marlborough Gallery, New York where he specialized in contemporary and modern art working with museums and private collectors as well as continuing to curate and lecture. From 2016 to 2017 he served as a Senior Specialist in Post-War & Contemporary and in Modern art at Paddle8 auction house, exploring the burgeoning areas of emerging artists and on-line collecting. He has also worked privately consulting with collectors in all areas of fine art.

Mr. Gitlitz succeeds Darsie Alexander, who was Executive Director of the KMA from 2014 through early 2018. Ms. Alexander was recently named Chief Curator of The Jewish Museum in New York City.