Lauren Haynes facts for kids

Lauren Haynes is a super cool American curator! A curator is someone who helps choose, organize, and display art in museums and galleries. She is currently the head curator for Governors Island in New York City. Before this, she worked at many other famous art places, like the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Arkansas and the Queens Museum. She has helped bring amazing art to people all over the country!

Lauren's Early Life and School

Lauren Haynes was born in Tennessee. When she was about twelve years old, her family moved to the Bronx, a part of New York City.

Discovering Art History

She went to college at Oberlin College. There, she earned a bachelor's degree in art history. This means she studied the history of art! While at Oberlin, she worked at the Allen Memorial Art Museum. The museum was led by an amazing art historian named Sharon Patton. Lauren was really inspired by Sharon Patton, who was an African-American woman and an expert in African-American art history. Seeing her helped Lauren decide to study art history herself.

Lauren's Exciting Career

After college, Lauren worked in a few different office jobs. But her real passion was art! She soon got a job at the Brooklyn Museum. Less than a year later, she moved to the Studio Museum in Harlem.

Working at the Studio Museum

Lauren joined the Studio Museum in 2006. She worked there for ten years! She started as a curatorial assistant and later became an associate curator. She helped put together many art shows, both at the Studio Museum and other places in New York City. She even curated shows featuring famous artists like Romare Bearden and Carrie Mae Weems. Lauren also worked on the museum's artist-in-residence program. This program helps new artists grow and become successful. Her work helped many artists become famous around the world!

Moving to Crystal Bridges

In 2016, Lauren became a curator of contemporary art at the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art. She also worked at the Momentary, another art space. She helped create many interesting exhibitions there. These included The Beyond: Georgia O'Keeffe and Contemporary Art (2018) and Crystals in Art: Ancient to Today (2019). She also helped bring the first exhibition of Soul of a Nation: Art in the Age of Black Power to the United States in 2018.

New Roles and Leadership

In 2020, Lauren became the director of artist initiatives and a curator at Crystal Bridges and the Momentary. She continued to help artists and organize exciting shows. In 2021, she moved to the Nasher Museum of Art at Duke University. Then, in 2022, she became the director of Curatorial Affairs and Programs at the Queens Museum. Finally, in 2024, she became the head curator and vice-president for arts and culture at Governors Island in New York City. She continues to bring amazing art experiences to people in her new role!

Other Activities

In 2018, Lauren was part of a special group. This group chose Rodney McMillian for the very first Suzanne Deal Booth Art Prize. This prize helps support talented artists.