Atlanta Contemporary has named Floyd Hall '99 executive director, the arts institution has announced.
Louise E. Shaw, curator of the David J. Sencer CDC Museum, was executive director of Atlanta Contemporary from 1983 to 1998, when it was still Nexus Contemporary Art Center. “I am thrilled. I think Floyd is an outstanding selection,” Shaw told ArtsATL this week. “He has a deep connection with the community and a long history of working with contemporary artists, particularly those working with social justice issues, as well as with new technologies. I expect he will bring his creativity to the role, along with a deep understanding of how nonprofits operate.”
Founded in 1973 as Nexus, a grassroots artists’ cooperative, Atlanta Contemporary has since become one of the southeast’s leading contemporary art centers. AC plays a vital role in Atlanta’s cultural landscape by presenting over 200 consequential artists and creatives from the local, national, and international art scenes through our various exhibition, project spaces, and programs each year.
In the organization’s press release, Katina Asbell, co-chair of the museum’s board of directors, stated: “[Floyd’s] extensive leadership experience in cultural, media and arts institutions, coupled with his innovative curatorial vision merging science, technology and art, position us for an exciting and transformative chapter in our journey as a leading force in contemporary art.”
Hall’s experience spans a range of artistic disciplines through curation, production and writing. Most recently, he was interim director at Science Gallery Atlanta, where he curated large-scale exhibits that merged art, science, design and technology with an emphasis on engaging with youth. In 2023, he curated JUSTICE, the first exhibit fully produced by Science Gallery Atlanta, and, in 2022, he co-curated HOOKED for the gallery; it was named Best of Atlanta by Atlanta Magazine.
In 2021, he co-curated The Future Happened for Museum of Design Atlanta, produced the regional podcast Bottom of the Map with WABE and, in 2020, produced and hosted Atlanta Legacy Makers for the nonprofit corporation Central Atlanta Progress and the city of Atlanta. He provided brand strategy leadership for Flux Projects and has written for Atlanta Magazine, ArtsATL and Art Papers. He co-founded Canopy Atlanta, a regional journalism nonprofit that amplifies the voices of local communities through national media platforms.
Hall, an AUCC Dual Degree Engineering Program alum has a bachelor’s degree in mathematics from Morehouse, a bachelor’s in mechanical engineering from Georgia Institute of Technology and an MBA from Columbia University’s business school.
“I’m a product of Atlanta, and this feels like the most amazing opportunity to add to the legacy of my hometown. It’s a dream come true,” stated Hall in the Atlanta Contemporary press release.