Yaddo Names Cyra Levenson as Next President

Yaddo, the nation’s foremost artist residency program, announced the appointment of Cyra Levenson as its next President. Levenson is currently the Deputy Director of Learning and Engagement at the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum and Foundation, an art museum on the Upper East Side of Manhattan. She will assume her new role on November 16, 2026, succeeding Elaina Richardson, who is stepping down after 26 years of leadership. 

“For 100 years Yaddo has been dedicated to creative people, to practice and to the magic that happens in community,” Levenson said. “Artists have a unique ability to see what doesn’t yet exist and to metabolize what is happening in the world in ways that others can digest and gain nourishment from. It is an honor and a privilege to support that effort as the next leader of Yaddo.”

At the Guggenheim Levenson serves on the Executive Team, where she has helped shape public engagement across the institution’s global constellation, developing initiatives that connect artists and audiences across disciplines. Her work has included establishing the museum’s first poet-in-residence program, welcoming new audiences to the museum through dynamic public programs, and collaborating with artists including Rashid Johnson, Nick Cave, and Cecilia Vicuña to create opportunities for musicians, dancers, actors, and poets to engage with the museum as a creative platform.

“Cyra Levenson brings to Yaddo a rare combination of strategic leadership, intellectual depth, and hands-on program experience,” said Peter Kayafas, Yaddo Board Co-Chair. “She is also a visual artist, and she understands, from the inside, what a place like Yaddo means to the artists and writers who work here. We could not be more delighted to have her lead Yaddo into its next century.” 

Before joining the Guggenheim, Levenson served as a Deputy Director at the Cleveland Museum and as Curator of Education and Academic Outreach at the Yale Center for British Art. 

Levenson studied visual arts and Asian art history at Oberlin College, where she earned her B.A., and holds an Ed.M. from Teachers College, Columbia University. 

The appointment follows a broad national search conducted in partnership with Russell Reynolds Associates, a global leadership advisory firm. The search was co-chaired by Yaddo Board Members Ann Chen and Alexi Worth under the leadership of Board Co-Chairs Kayafas and Lee. 

“We considered more than 200 candidates from across the country, and the finalists were an impressive and diverse group,” said Chen and Worth. “Cyra rose to the top because she pairs institutional and fundraising experience with a true artistic sensibility.” 

“I am so grateful to the Search Committee for the great care, intelligence, and rigor they brought to the process of selecting Yaddo’s next President, and I am thrilled by the result,” said current Yaddo President Elaina Richardson. “Cyra Levenson is a wonderful choice, and I am sure she will do much to increase Yaddo’s impact and ability to support artists in these challenging days. After leading Yaddo for 26 years and knowing the many unforeseens that can arise in today’s world, it is a joy to know our second century begins brightly.”

 Yaddo honored Richardson’s tenure at the Yaddo Centennial NYC Benefit on Oct. 5.