ST. LOUIS, MO.- Laumeier Sculpture Park welcomes Scott Malbaurn, former Executive Director of the Schneider Museum of Art at Southern Oregon University, as its new Executive Director on August 31.

Malbaurn is an arts leader, curator, and museum executive with more than 20 years of experience advancing contemporary art institutions, public art initiatives, and community-centered cultural programs. He brings extensive experience working at the intersection of art, landscape, public space, and civic engagement, with a focus on site-responsive practices and creating accessible cultural experiences.

“After a nationwide search led by EMD Consulting, we are thrilled to welcome Scott to Laumeier,” says Meridith McKinley, Laumeier’s board president. “In 11 years at the Schneider Museum of Art, he grew philanthropic support more than tenfold and brought in major grants from the National Endowment for the Arts and regional foundations. Combined with his clear vision for Laumeier and his collaborative approach with staff, he was the clear choice to lead us into our next chapter.”

A significant part of Malbaurn’s work has focused on public art and the relationship between contemporary art and the built and natural environment. At the Schneider Museum of Art, he stewarded a growing public art program and advanced site-specific and long-term outdoor projects. His curatorial work has consistently explored questions of place, environment, ecology, and public space, including the biennial public art initiative Art Beyond.

Prior to the Schneider Museum of Art, Malbaurn worked for The Isamu Noguchi Foundation and Garden Museum in New York, first as Curatorial and Collections Assistant and later as a Noguchi Design Associate. There, he contributed to exhibitions integrating sculpture, design, and landscape and researched and realized unfinished sculptural and design works by Isamu Noguchi.





In 2025–2026, Malbaurn served as Critic and Curator in the MFA Painting and Printmaking program at Yale University, where he led graduate critiques, seminars, and exhibition development. He has also taught and lectured at Pratt Institute, Yale University, the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, the School of Visual Arts, Cornell University, and the Fashion Institute of Technology. He received his BFA from the Maryland Institute College of Art and his MFA from Pratt Institute.

Malbaurn joins Laumeier during its 50th anniversary year, a milestone celebrating five decades of engaging the community through art and nature.

“I am thrilled to be joining Laumeier Sculpture Park at such an exciting moment in its history. From my first conversations with the organization, I have been deeply impressed by the devotion, expertise, and commitment of the Laumeier staff, as well as by the many engaged and dedicated board members I have had the opportunity to meet. I see this community of staff and board leadership as exceptional strategic partners in realizing Laumeier’s future. Together, I look forward to building on Laumeier’s extraordinary legacy and expanding its impact as a place where art, landscape, artists, and community come together,” says Malbaurn.