CORNING, NY.- The Board of Trustees of The Rockwell Museum announced the appointment of Erin M. Coe as the new executive director, effective January 6, 2025. With decades of experience as a museum leader, curator, educator and arts advocate, Coe brings a wealth of expertise and vision to The Rockwell as it advances its position as a destination and community resource for American art and culture.
Coe’s distinguished career most recently includes her tenure at the Palmer Museum of Art at Penn State, where as director she provided transformative leadership, re-envisioning the museum’s mission and goals, enhancing its national reputation, as well as the strategic direction of the institution, which celebrated its 50th anniversary as the university art museum at Penn State in 2022. She was at the forefront of a major capital project resulting in a new 73,000 square foot state-of-the-art building for the Palmer located in the Arboretum at Penn State. Prior to her leadership role at the Palmer Museum, she spent 18 years at The Hyde Collection, an accredited art museum located in the Capital Region of New York. She served as chief curator before advancing to executive director, a position she held at the time of her departure to Penn State in 2017.
“We are thrilled to welcome Erin M. Coe to The Rockwell Museum and the community of Corning,” said Board of Trustees President Melissa Gambol. “Her extensive background in arts and education, coupled with her leadership experience and her commitment to community collaboration make her the exact leader The Rockwell was looking for as we vision for the future.”
Coe expressed her enthusiasm about joining the Museum, stating, "I am excited to take the helm at The Rockwell Museum, a gem in the Finger Lakes region. I look forward to collaborating with the talented staff, board and community members as we work together to deepen the museum’s impact and engagement with both local and national audiences."
There were many factors that led Coe to the position. “There is a great sense of momentum at The Rockwell, which is palpable from the moment you enter the building. I look forward to building on this energy and advancing the Museum's priorities, mission and goals. With the charge to steer a new strategic plan, AAM reaccreditation, and the Museum’s 50th anniversary in 2026, among other high-level initiatives, I am honored to lead The Rockwell into its next era of innovation and impact.”
Under her leadership, The Rockwell Museum aims to build on its legacy as a Smithsonian Affiliate and to serve as an essential cultural institution in the region with compelling exhibitions and dynamic programming on the horizon.
“I am looking forward to working alongside Erin,” said Director of Finance and Operations and current Interim Director Lisa Gill. “In my time as interim director, I have grown an even deeper appreciation for all that we do here at The Rockwell. Erin is already so aligned with the Museum’s values and trajectory, I’m excited to see her hit the ground running here in Corning.”
The Board of Trustees Search Committee conducted a national search seeking an executive director to chart new pathways for growth, engagement and excellence.
Board of Trustees Member Camille Torres chaired the search committee. “As with everything we do at The Rockwell, we took a very collaborative approach to the hiring process. We engaged a broad variety of stakeholders, from staff to community partners, on what kind of leader would be best, not only for the Museum but for the wider creative community here, and Erin was the clear choice,” said Torres.
Erin M. Coe comes to The Rockwell Museum from the Palmer Museum of Art where she has served as director and associate clinical professor in the College of Arts and Architecture at Penn State. During her tenure she has provided transformative leadership and was at the forefront of the University’s initiative to construct a new state-of-the-art building for the Palmer Museum located in the Arboretum at Penn State. The new 73,000 square foot museum, designed by Allied Works, opened its doors to the public on June 1, 2024, and has led to unprecedented attendance in the first quarter.
Coe’s leadership and commitment to staff success and academic impact led to the development of several groundbreaking exhibitions, including “MADE in PA” (2024), the inaugural exhibition in the new museum, which she co-curated; as well as national traveling exhibitions “Global Asias: Contemporary Asian and Asian American Art from the Collections of Jordan Schnitzer and His Family Foundation” (2021) and “Plastic Entanglements: Ecology, Aesthetics, Materials” (2018), among others. Several exhibitions developed during her time as director were accompanied by significant publications, providing new scholarship that emphasizes local, global and interdisciplinary perspectives.
During Coe’s tenure, the permanent collection has grown by 38 percent, and she stewarded several significant gifts, including the John Driscoll Collection of American Drawings and the bequest of 200 works of art from museum namesake, Barbara Palmer. She spearheaded a major commission by the internationally acclaimed artist Dale Chihuly titled “Lupine Blue Persian Wall” that wraps the walls of the feature staircase in the new museum building.
Coe forged significant institutional partnerships at the museum, including with Art Bridges and the Philadelphia Museum of Art. For the past seven years, she prioritized the acquisition of works by underrepresented artists to bring greater diversity to the museum’s holdings and oversaw the acquisition of works by such artists as Ernie Barnes, Rodrigo Lara, Roberto Lugo, Beverly McIver, Malcolm Mobutu Smith, Kukuli Velarde, Purvis Young and Henry Ossawa Tanner, among others. She has led new initiatives to address access, equity and inclusion in the organization’s culture, as well as its exhibitions and public programs. In addition, she prioritized faculty and student engagement across all areas of the university and established the first-ever Teaching Gallery in the new museum. She made strategic investments in digital interactives, including the virtual art garden wall in the new Exploration Gallery, and fostered a community-centered approach to the interpretation of the collection.
Coe is the former executive director of The Hyde Collection in Glens Falls, New York. There she led a capital project that included an expansion and renovation to the museum’s 1989 Edward Larabee Barnes-designed exhibition wing. She secured a major gift of postwar modern art that resulted in the addition of a new gallery dedicated to modern and contemporary art. Prior to serving as the director, Coe was the museum’s chief curator and during her tenure she curated more than 45 exhibitions, authored over a dozen publications, contributed to national art periodicals and juried several regional and national shows.
Before stepping down from The Hyde Collection in 2017, she was honored with a Congressional Recognition for her years of dedication to cultivating and promoting the arts in New York’s 21st District.
Coe holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of New Mexico, a master’s degree from the University at Albany, State University of New York, and worked on a doctorate in the history of art and architecture at Boston University.
