We are delighted to share wonderful news on behalf of the Corning Museum of Glass Board of Trustees: Dr. Jessica Levin Martinez, current director of the Herbert F. Johnson Museum of Art at Cornell University, has been appointed the next president and executive director, succeeding Dr. Karol Wight upon her retirement in January 2026. Dr. Martinez will officially begin on February 2, 2026.
“Dr, Martinez’s leadership style is energetic, visionary, and deeply human,” said Dr. Jeffrey Evenson, president of the Museum’s Board of Trustees. “At Cornell’s Johnson Museum of Art, she has led with rigor and delight since 2019—building teams, strengthening collections, driving fundraising, and creating meaningful connections with visitors, students, and scholars alike.”
Dr. Martinez joins the Museum at a very exciting and pivotal time. She brings exceptional strategic, fundraising, and collection stewardship experience. With this appointment, we are welcoming a leader who will carry forward Karol’s extraordinary legacy and guide us into our 75th anniversary year—a milestone that celebrates the Museum’s role as the world’s leading center for the art, history, and science of glass.
“It is an honor to become the next director of the Corning Museum of Glass, an institution I have long admired,” said Dr. Martinez. “The Museum’s mission to transform how the world understands the art, history, and science of glass resonates deeply with me, and I look forward to building on its remarkable legacy.”
Dr. Martinez earned her doctorate in the history of art and architecture from Harvard University in 2004 and later travelled to Prague and Slovakia to investigate the provenance of Nazi-looted artwork. She became an educator and administrator at the Smithsonian National Museum of African Art before returning to Harvard in 2012 to direct academic and public programs and support integration of the Fogg, Sackler, and Busch-Reisinger museums. In 2019, Dr. Martinez was named director of the Herbert F. Johnson Museum of Art at Cornell, where she raised more than $32M in endowment and current-use gifts in support of curatorial positions, programming, and spaces. She also established new curatorial roles, oversaw prominent commissions and acquisitions, and led an important infrastructure refresh to enhance accessibility.
We are excited to welcome Dr. Martinez to our community and look forward to the future together.