National Galleries of Scotland get first female chief
The new director-general of the National Galleries of Scotland is to be Anne Lyden, currently co-director of collections and research at the galleries.
Succeeding Sir John Leighton, who steps down at the end of 2023 after 17 years in the post, she will be the first female head of the institution.
Portrait by Laura Prieto
Born in West Dunbartonshire and educated at Glasgow and Leicester Universities, worked for 18 years at the Paul Getty Museum in Los Angeles before joining the National Galleries in 2013 as a photography curator.
“Anne Lyden is a highly talented curator and leader with a strong commitment to inclusion and diversity” Leighton said of his successor. “She has a compelling vision of the benefits that access to great art can achieve in these volatile times and is the right person to drive forward the National Galleries’ commitment to bringing world-class art to the widest possible audience.”