James Steward

James Steward has served as the Nancy A. Nasher–David J. Haemisegger, Class of 1976, Director of the Princeton University Art Museum since April 2009. There, he directs a staff of 185 with an operating budget of approximately $30 million and collections of more than 117,000 works of art that span the globe and encompass over 5,000 years of human history. In addition, Steward serves as Lecturer with the rank of Professor in the Department of Art & Archaeology, is a faculty fellow of Rockefeller College, and is an honorary member of the Classes of 1967 and 1970. 

Prior to coming to Princeton, Steward served from 1998 to 2009 as director of the University of Michigan Museum of Art, where he oversaw the planning, design, and construction for a major new building, recognized as one of the ten best new buildings in 2010 by the American Institute of Architects. 

James holds a BA from the University of Virginia and a doctorate in the history of art from Trinity College, Oxford University. He has authored numerous volumes and curated major touring exhibitions ranging from the art of eighteenth-century Italy to Edvard Munch as well as the art of Betye Saar. He is a recipient of numerous grants and fellowships, as well as the Chancellor’s Medal for distinguished service at the University of California, Berkeley. Steward is a member of the Order of St. Petersburg and a Knight of the Royal House of Portugal, for services to art and education.