Sarah Meister

Sarah Meister is the executive director of Aperture, a nonprofit publisher and arts organization focused on advancing the medium of photography. Meister assumed this role after more than 25 years at the Museum of Modern Art in New York, where she served as a curator in the Department of Photography. Her curatorial work at the museum included exhibitions such as "Fotoclubismo: Brazilian Modernist Photography," "Dorothea Lange: Words & Pictures," and "Making Space: Women Artists and Postwar Abstraction," as well as publications on artists including Frances Benjamin Johnston, Josef Albers, Bill Brandt, and Gordon Parks.

At Aperture, Meister has led strategic initiatives to strengthen the organization's legacy and global reach, including efforts to secure a permanent home for Aperture in Manhattan and overseeing the release of new editions of works such as Robert Frank’s "The Americans." She curated the touring exhibition "Carrie Mae Weems: The Heart of the Matter," accompanied by an Aperture publication, and has supported educational and outreach programs, including founding and hosting the Aperture PhotoBook Club. Meister’s commitment to scholarship and public engagement is reflected in her role as the inaugural instructor for the online course "Seeing Through Photographs" and as co-director of the August Sander Project, a research initiative between the Museum of Modern Art and Columbia University.

Meister is recognized as a curator and voice in the photography and art communities, known for her leadership, scholarship, and dedication to diversity, equity, and inclusion. Her public speaking engagements, including appearances at events such as Paris Photo and the Aspen Ideas Festival, highlight her expertise in photography and visual culture. Meister’s work at Aperture centers on using photography to promote understanding and justice, emphasizing the medium’s relevance in contemporary culture.