After reimagining and successfully rebuilding the Harvard Art Museums, and more than a decade at the helm, Director Thomas W. Lentz will step down on July 1. The announcement comes after last fall’s launch of our new Harvard Art Museums facility, designed by Renzo Piano Building Workshop. Tom spearheaded the redevelopment after a years-long strategic planning process, which resulted in a vision for an innovative, interdisciplinary arts laboratory, where works of art serve as engines for inquiry.

“Tom Lentz has made an extraordinary and enduring contribution to Harvard by leading the transformation of the Harvard Art Museums into the magnificent ‘teaching machine’ that opened last fall,” Harvard University president Drew Faust told the Harvard Gazette. “His vision did not just include the creation of exhilarating new spaces, but the reconceptualization of the place of art—and the museums’ treasures—in the curriculum and in the life of the University and its wider community.

“Tom never faltered in his dedication to this project, overcoming organizational, financial, and myriad other challenges with unrelenting—and quietly understated, yet compelling—zeal,” Faust added. “He leaves a legacy that will benefit us all for decades to come. He has earned both our profound gratitude and our deepest admiration.”

Thank you, Tom—for your leadership, your vision, and your belief in our goals, and what we have achieved together: a model for a 21st-century university art museum.