Seattle Art Museum Names New Chief Curator

The Seattle Art Museum (SAM) has appointed Frank Feltens as its next chief curator. He succeeds José Carlos Diaz, who departed the institution last October to be the chief curator of the Peréz Art Museum Miami. Feltens will start in his role on August 17.

Feltens is currently associate director for curatorial affairs and curator of Japanese art at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Asian Art in Washington, D.C. He joined the museum as a postdoctoral fellow in 2016 and worked his way up to the associate director role, to which he was promoted in July 2025.

At the National Museum of Asian Art, Feltens has organized thematic exhibitions like “Imagined Neighbors: Japanese Visions of China, 1680–1980” (in 2024) and “Mind Over Matter: Zen in Medieval Japan” (2022), as well as single-artist shows like “Hokusai: Mad about Painting” (2021). He also curated “From Kiyochika to Hasui: Modern Japan in Prints and Photographs,” an exhibition drawing from the National Museum of Asian Art’s collection that was on view  at the Mitsubishi Ichigokan Museum in Tokyo earlier this year.

At SAM, Feltens will lead the museum’s curatorial direction for its exhibitions, collections, and research across its three sites: the Seattle Art Museum, the Seattle Asian Art Museum, and the Olympic Sculpture Park.

“Frank is exactly the kind of visionary leader we were looking for at this moment in SAM’s history,” SAM director and CEO Scott Stulen said in a statement. “He brings an exceptional combination of deep scholarship, collaborative leadership, and ambitious thinking about what museums can be. Throughout the search, Frank impressed us with his curiosity, preparation, and genuine enthusiasm about Seattle—from spending time in our galleries listening to visitors to sharing thoughtful ideas about how SAM can build on its strengths while creating new opportunities for artists, audiences, and our community.”

Speaking about the Stulen’s vision for the museum, Feltens said in a statement, “What I have seen is genuine commitment to being a real hub for local communities while aspiring to visionary leadership in the museum sector. This is true ambition grounded in real collaboration and thoughtfulness, making it the exactly right moment for me to join. I am looking forward to realizing that ambition with Scott and the team.”