San Francisco’s beloved Fine Arts Museums — the de Young in Golden Gate Park and the Legion of Honor in Lincoln Park — are turning an exciting new page. Emily Sano, the museums’ deputy director and chief curator, will step in as interim director on November 1, guiding the institution while its board searches for a permanent leader.
Sano is a familiar and trusted figure in the museum world. Before joining the Fine Arts Museums, she directed the Asian Art Museum of San Francisco and the Kimbell Art Museum in Fort Worth, bringing decades of curatorial and leadership experience to the role. She will work alongside Director and CEO Thomas P. Campbell, who concludes his tenure at the end of the year after nine years that brought record audiences, major exhibitions and a renewed focus on community.
For visitors, it is business as joyful as usual: the de Young’s landmark tower views, celebrated American art galleries and popular Friday-night programs continue, while the Legion of Honor pairs its Rodin sculptures and European masterpieces with one of the finest views in the city. Together, the two museums form the largest public arts institution in San Francisco — and their next chapter is already looking bright.
Photo: Wikimedia Commons (Billie Ward, CC BY 4.0)
