BOCA RATON, FL.- Today, the Boca Raton Museum of Art's Board of Trustees announced that Steven V. Maklansky has been chosen as the Museum's new Director. He will begin his position July 1, 2011.

"The Boca Raton Museum of Art provides extraordinary artistic, cultural, and educational experiences, in an extraordinary setting, to an extraordinary community," Maklansky observed. "I look forward to building upon its established success as one of south Florida's leading cultural attractions, and reinforcing the Museum's position as an engaging and participatory platform where an exciting range of art and ideas is presented and explored."

Mr. Maklansky has served as the Executive Director at the Brevard Art Museum in Melbourne, Florida since 2009 where he guided the institution to establish strong partnerships with local companies, schools, civic and cultural organizations. In addition, he created a new institutional focus on the intersection of art and science, new community outreach programs, the Brevard Art Museum press (which has published nine books and catalogs), and more than a dozen compelling and inventive exhibitions including, From Gutter to Gallery: Graffiti Gets In and Navel Gazing: Fresh Squeezed Visions of Florida.

"We are confident that Steven is the right leader to build upon the Boca Raton Museum of Art's solid foundation established over the past 60 years," explained Board President, Paul W. Carman. "He possesses the experience and leadership qualities ideally suited to fulfill our vision for the future."

Prior to his arrival in Florida, he served as the Director of Curatorial Services for the Louisiana State Museum. In this capacity, he had a senior leadership role in all phases of the museum's administration including long-term planning, exhibitions and collections, fundraising, public relations and daily operations. Additionally, he was responsible for bringing in major exhibitions such as GOLD from the American Museum of Natural History and Let Your Motto Be Resistance: African American Portraits from the National Portrait Gallery.

Previously, he served as Assistant Director for Art and Curator of Photographs at New Orleans Museum of Art. His exhibition Katrina Exposed, featuring more than 700 photographs of the storm's aftermath, was named Best Exhibition of the Year by the New Orleans Times Picayune in 2006. Receiving the same accolade in 2001, his OrganEyezation exhibition contemplated how museums select and organize photographs. At NOMA, Mr. Maklansky was also instrumental in the creation and presentation of many blockbuster exhibitions including Jefferson's America & Napoleon's France: An Exhibition for the Louisiana Purchase Bicentennial and The Quest for Immortality: Treasures of Ancient Egypt.

Mr. Maklansky received his undergraduate degree from Tulane University, his Masters from New York University and is a graduate of the Getty Foundation's Museum Leadership Institute. He has written many books and articles and presented scores of lectures on a broad range of topics related to art and museums.