Amy Kirwin Promoted To Artistic Director Of Southampton Arts Center

May 7, 2018 11:16 AM

Southampton Arts Center’s director of programs, Amy Kirwin, has been promoted to a new post, the multidisciplinary arts center announced Wednesday.

Ms. Kirwin, who came to Southampton Arts Center from the Parrish Art Museum in 2016, is now the artistic director. She reports to Tom Dunn, the newly hired executive director, who assumed the helm last month.

According to Southampton Arts Center, Ms. Kirwin drove the growth of the institution to become a year-round operation that offers more than 200 programs annually.

“I am delighted and honored to continue the work of the past two years, now as artistic director,” Ms. Kirwin said in a statement. “In my new role I plan to expand our robust partnership model by continuing to collaborate with those who have been so much a part of our early successes, and to seek out new programmatic partners, far and wide. I am excited to build on SAC’s unique programming with thought-provoking, socially and culturally relevant, world-class offerings.”

Mr. Dunn said, “Amy is a tremendously talented curator and collaborator. Her work is well respected on eastern Long Island, in New York City and well beyond. It is my privilege to work with Amy in the realization of her artistic vision.”

A Hampton Bays resident, Ms. Kirwin previously lived in New York City, where she worked in the theater industry. She arrived on the East End in 2010 and worked at the Parrish Art Museum for six years, most recently as visitor services and museum programs manager. When she began working there, the Parrish was still located at 25 Jobs Lane in Southampton Village—the location that Southampton Arts Center now occupies. The Parrish moved to a new facility in Water Mill in 2012, and the vacancy of 25 Jobs Lane spurred the creation of Southampton Arts Center.

“We are extremely proud of what SAC has accomplished since opening our doors in 2013 and as we enter this exciting new chapter, SAC is poised for continued growth and impact,” said Southampton Arts Center Board of Directors co-chair Simone Levinson. “Over the past two years, Amy has proven herself to be an innovative and dynamic programmer. We are confident that she is the perfect person to step up into this new role and shape the overall artistic vision of Southampton Arts Center.”