Alum Joins Pitzer College Art Galleries as New Director

Emily Butts ’15 was selected as the new director of curatorial affairs and the Pitzer College Art Galleries. In addition to a BA in art history and English and world literature at Pitzer, Butts earned an MA in art history from the University of Texas at Austin with a focus on modern and contemporary art of the Americas, particularly Latinx art.  

As a student at Pitzer, Butts assisted with exhibitions in the Pitzer College Art Galleries. She has served as a curatorial assistant at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art and was also the assistant director of the Lawndale Art Center in Houston, Texas. Butts has served in several roles at the new Lucas Museum of Narrative Art in Los Angeles, including as an exhibition project manager.    

Butts enjoys bringing together her academic training and her experiences as an administrator, curator, and exhibition project manager. She plans to continue to connect the Pitzer College Art Galleries and exhibitions with academic programming and courses. She will also explore how to develop and stage exhibitions that amplify diverse voices in art and museums.