Press Release Eric C. Shiner Named Director of The Andy Warhol Museum

Carnegie Museums of Pittsburgh today announced that Eric C. Shiner has been named director of The Andy Warhol Museum. Shiner joined the museum in 2008 as the Milton Fine Curator of Art, and he has served as acting director since January 2011.

A curator, professor, writer, and translator, Shiner was an adjunct professor at The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art, and in 2007 he curated “Making a Home: Japanese Contemporary Artists in New York” at Japan Society in New York City. He also served as assistant curator of the Yokohama Triennale 2001. After joining The Warhol, Shiner organized the large-scale exhibition, “The End: Analyzing Art in Troubled Times.”

“In Eric Shiner, Carnegie Museums has appointed a director who is at once scholarly and refined, yet populist and welcoming—not unlike the dichotomous art of Andy Warhol himself,” said John Wetenhall, president & CEO of Carnegie Museums of Pittsburgh. “Since joining The Warhol, Eric has distinguished himself not only for his knowledge and connoisseurship of the art of Andy Warhol, but for his passion about the cultural outreach that Warhol’s world extends to audiences of all kinds and his dedication to presenting challenging programming that serves non-traditional and underserved audiences, which has become a trademark of The Warhol.

“A scholar of contemporary Asian art, Eric has embraced The Warhol’s ambitious plans to continue traveling its collections around the world and to partner with Pittsburgh’s business community in international outreach,” Wetenhall added. “He has also demonstrated a wonderful commitment to collaboration with our staff, his fellow museum directors, and cultural organizations throughout the region and beyond.”

A proud native of New Castle, Pa., Shiner received his Bachelor of Philosophy in the History of Art & Architecture and Japanese Language & Literature at the University of Pittsburgh’s Honors College. He went on to receive the Japanese Government’s Ministry of Education Monbusho Prize and attended graduate school at Osaka University, where he earned an MA in the History of Art. It was in his last semester at Osaka that Shiner interned in the curatorial department of The National Museum of Modern Art in Kyoto, where he worked closely with Shinji Kohmoto, the museum’s chief curator, who would become his mentor. This led to Shiner becoming assistant curator of the Yokohama Triennale 2001.

Shiner was named acting director of The Warhol early this year after Thomas Sokolowski stepped down as director after a 14-year tenure. Today, in addition to his museum work, Shiner is an active writer, lecturer, and translator; a contributing editor for Art AsiaPacific magazine; and an adjunct professor of art history at the University of Pittsburgh.

“I am honored to be named the director of an institution that is as dynamic as the city it calls home, the dedicated staff that propels it, and the supportive board and the public who cherish it,” said Eric Shiner. “Having started my career in the art world here at The Warhol as an intern 17 years ago, it both humbles and excites me to be given the honor of promoting Andy Warhol and his legacy while doing my part to help The Andy Warhol Museum, Carnegie Museums, and Pittsburgh shine.”

“Eric is the clear choice to carry The Andy Warhol Museum’s mission forward,” said Randy Dearth, chair of The Warhol Board. “Eric is committed to bringing diverse and dynamic artists to the museum and making them accessible to all audiences—from the art community to the general public. I look forward to the new and exciting directions the museum will take under Eric’s leadership.”

Founded by Andrew Carnegie in 1895, Carnegie Museums of Pittsburgh is a collection of four distinctive museums: Carnegie Museum of Art, Carnegie Museum of Natural History, Carnegie Science Center, and The Andy Warhol Museum. Collectively, the museums reached more than 1.29 million people in 2010 through exhibitions, educational programs, outreach activities, and special events.