The Metropolitan Museum of Art has announced the appointment of Maria Castro as associate curator in its modern and contemporary art department. Castro will begin her new role later this month as the museum prepares for significant expansion ahead of the opening of the Tang Wing in 2030.
"This is an incredibly active phase for the department, as we plan and implement the renovation of the Oscar L. and H.M. Agnes Hsu-Tang Wing," said Met director Max Hollein in a statement. "I'm delighted that Maria will be joining the Museum as we undertake this important work and continue to build a world-class collection."
Castro brings extensive experience from her tenure at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, where she has worked since 2018. She initially joined SFMOMA as an assistant curator and was promoted to associate curator of painting and sculpture in 2024. Currently, she is co-curating an exhibition centered around one of SFMOMA's most iconic works, Henri Matisse's "Femme au chapeau" (1905), which is scheduled to open next May.
During her time at SFMOMA, Castro has demonstrated her curatorial expertise through several notable projects. She co-organized the museum's current permanent collection installation titled "1900 to Now: SFMOMA's Collection." Additionally, she curated a presentation of Amalia Mesa-Bains's "Venus Envy, Chapter I: The First Holy Communion Moments Before the End" (1993/2022) following its acquisition by the museum. Her other significant exhibitions include co-organizing "Sitting on Chrome: Mario Ayala, rafa esparza, and Guadalupe Rosales" in 2023 and "Pan American Unity: A Mural by Diego Rivera" in 2021.
Before joining SFMOMA, Castro served as the Leonard A. Lauder Predoctoral Research Fellow in Modern Art at the Metropolitan Museum. This fellowship was established after the late collector Leonard Lauder donated 78 Cubist masterpieces to the Met and established a research center. She also gained valuable experience as an intern at the Carnegie Museum of Art in Pittsburgh and earned her PhD in art history from the University of Pittsburgh.
Castro's scholarly research focuses primarily on connecting various 20th-century modernisms from across the Americas to Europe. This expertise aligns perfectly with the Met's vision for expanding its modern and contemporary art presentations. David Breslin, curator in charge of the department of modern and contemporary art, praised the appointment in a statement: "I'm elated that Maria will be joining The Met at such a crucial time. Maria is a thoughtful, creative, and diligent curator and scholar specializing in late 19th- and 20th-century Latin American art, with particular emphasis on modernism across the Americas and connections to Europe."
In her new role at the Met, Castro will collaborate with the modern and contemporary department's curatorial team to reimagine, contextualize, and expand the museum's presentations of art from 1890 to 1950. This work will be particularly significant as the museum prepares for the upcoming Tang Wing opening, which represents a major expansion of the museum's modern and contemporary art spaces.
Expressing her enthusiasm for the new position, Castro stated, "I am thrilled to be joining The Met, notably at this historic moment as the Museum looks ahead to the forthcoming Tang Wing. I look forward to reimagining the presentation of modern and contemporary art in this context, and within the broader context of The Met's incredible collection." Her appointment represents a strategic addition to the museum's curatorial staff as it enters this transformative period of growth and renovation.
