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Richard Kurin

Dr. Richard Kurin serves as the Smithsonian Institution’s Under Secretary for History, Art, and Culture overseeing most of its national museums in Washington, D.C. and in New York City. He received his B.A. from UB majoring in anthropology and philosophy. A former Fulbright-Hays fellow, he earned his Ph.D. in cultural anthropology from the University of Chicago, and taught at The Johns Hopkins University Nitze School of Advanced International Studies. He is the author of Hope Diamond: The Legendary History of a Cursed Gem, and Reflections of a Cultural Broker: A View from the Smithsonian, numerous other books and scholarly articles. He served on the U.S. Commission for UNESCO, been the keynote speaker for the International Council of Museums, and delivered the founder’s lecturer for Harvard University’s Peabody Museum. For decades he directed the Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage, responsible for the Smithsonian Folklife Festival held every summer on the National Mall, Smithsonian Folkways Recordings and other cultural programs and products that have won Grammy, Emmy, and Academy awards. He helped write an international treaty for the safeguarding of the world’s living cultural heritage. He has produced major cultural events for the Atlanta Olympics, the Smithsonian’s 150^th anniversary, the opening of the World War II Memorial, the opening of the National Museum of the American Indian, and programs for numerous presidential inaugurals, including that of President Obama. He serves on the President’s Committee for the Arts and Humanities, the board of the White House Historical Association, and the boards of numerous museums and cultural institutions.