Director, Hammer Museum

Philbin, who will step down as director of the UCLA Hammer Museum in the fall, has been instrumental in transforming the Hammer into a world-renown cultural institution. Philbin, who has a B.A. in art history and a B.F.A. in painting from the University of New Hampshire, received her M.A. in museum studies and art administration from NYU. She was previously director of The Drawing Center in New York, and joined the Hammer in 1999, replacing Henry Hopkins, who retired. She developed and oversaw The Hammer’s $180 million capital campaign, which kicked off in 2018 and has resulted in the expansion of the Westwood-based museum’s gallery space and public areas.

YEARS ON LA500: 7