Image courtesy of The Museum of Modern Art
In the 17 years he served as Chief of the Library and Museum Archives at The Museum of Modern Art, Hughston had the good fortune to be part of an endeavor to revive the Museum's historic support and promotion of modern and contemporary Latin American art. This was done in partnership with new energy in administration, curatorial, and trustee leadership that recognized we had the opportunity to build on what was already a strong program but could be augmented with new scholarship and acquisitions. The Library was an enthusiastic partner in this endeavor, and Hughston will describe how the Library took advantage of the opportunities to build and promote the collection.
Seating is limited for this seminar, interested UT students, faculty and staff can email Adele Nelson to reserve a spot.
Milan R. Hughston retired as Chief of Library and Museum Archives at The Museum of Modern Art in October 2016 and is now providing consultation for best practices in art information, including serving as a member of the strategic planning team for a new art history library at The University of Texas at Dallas. Before assuming his duties at MoMA in September 1999, Hughston was a librarian at the Amon Carter Museum from 1979 to 1999. During that time, he published comprehensive bibliographies in Museum publications including Thomas Eakins (1996); the photography collection catalogue (1993); Eliot Porter (1989); and Laura Gilpin (1986). While at MoMA, he devoted his energies to planning and coordinating the opening of the research facilities in Manhattan and Queens. In 2000 he established, with May Castleberry, a new program called the Library Council, founded to promote the research resources of MoMA through a membership program and publications of artist books in a series called Contemporary Editions. He is also a founding member of the New York Art Resources Consortium, which coordinates collaborative projects between the research libraries of MoMA, The Frick Collection, and The Brooklyn Museum. A native of Clarksville, Texas, Hughston received his BA in journalism and his MLS from The University of Texas at Austin. In 1978/1979, he was the recipient of a Rotary International Scholarship and studied at the University of Manchester, England's post-graduate program in art gallery and museum studies.