The College of Arts and Sciences welcomes Lisa Tamiris Becker as the first Director of the Abroms-Engel Institute for the Visual Arts (AEIVA).
Lisa has most recently served as the director of the University of New Mexico Art Museum, where she also served as an associate professor. In her role as director, she has overseen numerous exhibitions and a permanent collection of more than 30,000 works of photography, painting, sculpture, printmaking, African art, and ceramics. Before joining UNM, Lisa served as the director of the CU Art Museum at the University of Colorado, Boulder, a position she held for 10.5 years.
At both universities, Lisa increased annual programming and exhibition support through museum membership and individual gifts and grands, grew the collections of both museums, and enhanced the arts both on campus and in the larger communities. She has experience in branding, communications, and member relations, as well as in facilities development and management.
Lisa received her BA (magna cum laude) from the University of Pennsylvania with a degree in mathematics and art history. She completed her MFA in studio art and art theory from the University of Texas at Austin in 1995, with a focus on experimental sculpture, new media, and installation.
After completing her degrees, Lisa began her career as a curator and director with positions at Women and Their Work in Austin, Texas; The John Michael Kohler Arts Center in Sheboygan, Wisconsin; and the Richard L. Nelson Gallery & The Fine Arts Collection at the University of California, Davis. Over the course of her career, she has presented at numerous lectures, symposia, and conferences — both in the United States and abroad — on topics focusing on the intersection of contemporary art, multimedia, and politics in many different cultures, including Korean, Latin American, Scandinavian, Arab, Greek, Jewish, Tibetan, and more. She has published essays in numerous catalogues and edited volumes regularly since 1998.
Lisa's experience as an administrator, curator, instructor, and cultural liaison will accelerate the development of AEIVA programs and extend AEIVA's influence regionally, nationally, and internationally. Under her guidance, AEIVA will become a place at which people of all ages can experience the visual arts.
Please join the College in welcoming Lisa to UAB!