KENNESAW, Ga. | Jun 30, 2020

Thompson recently served as associate prof. and director of two graduate programs at University of the Arts

Geo Sipp, director of the School of Art and Design at Kennesaw State University, has named Cynthia Nourse Thompson director of curatorial affairs at the Zuckerman Museum of Art, effective August 1. She holds an MFA in Printmaking from Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, and a BFA in Printmaking from the Maryland Institute College of Art.

Thompson most recently served as associate professor and director of graduate degree programs in both Printmaking & Book Arts and Studio Arts at University of the Arts (UArts) in Philadelphia. Prior to UArts, she served as associate professor of printmaking and curator of exhibitions at the University of Arkansas. Additionally, she worked for twelve years at Memphis College of Art, serving as chair of the Fine Arts Department and curator of exhibitions. 

“I am pleased to welcome Cynthia to the School of Art and Design team in the College of the Arts at KSU,” said Sipp. “Her experience serving as an associate professor at two prior institutions and leading a fine arts department—as well as her vast curatorial experience—will be invaluable as the Zuckerman Museum of Art moves forward.”

During her tenure at the University of Arkansas, Thompson established a unique vision for the gallery as well as public spaces on campus—securing the University’s purchase of works by Willie Cole, Chakaia Booker and Leonardo Drew for the campus public art advisory board on which she served. She curated the exhibit Employing Voice, Embracing Agency in honor of African American History Month; the exhibit included works by Radcliffe Bailey, Demetrius Oliver, Mickalene Thomas and Willie Cole, among others. Recently, she was guest curator for the exhibition MIRROR, MIRROR: The Prints of Alison Saar from the Collections of Jordan D. Schnitzer and His Family Foundation. As curator of Walton Arts Center in Fayetteville, Arkansas, she helped to fuel great interest in contemporary art in the northwest Arkansas region, and established the Joy Pratt Markham Gallery as the region’s premier venue for exhibiting contemporary art. 

Thompson has also served as visiting faculty at University of Georgia’s study abroad program in Cortona, Italy; the prestigious Santa Reparata International School of Art in Florence, Italy; and the University of Arkansas Program in Rome, Italy.
--Kathie Beckett