Dr. Tzo Zen Ang. Photo credit credit Cat Garcia
The Courtauld Institute of Art has announced that Dr. Tzo Zen Ang, currently Chief Operating Officer at the Royal Academy of Arts, has been appointed as its first Managing Director. This newly created role, focusing on the operational management of The Courtauld as it delivers an ambitious transformation programme, will see Tzo Zen joining the Senior Management Team and reporting to the Ma?rit Rausing Director, Professor Deborah Swallow.
Professor Deborah Swallow, Ma?rit Rausing Director of The Courtauld, said:
“The addition of such a highly respected and talented professional to the senior management team reflects the scale and ambition of Courtauld Connects, the biggest programme of development in our history. I look forward with great enthusiasm to working with Tzo Zen on the delivery of the project and our wider strategic objectives.”
The appointment comes at a key moment in the institution’s history, as it undergoes a major, multi-million-pound redevelopment, the biggest project of its kind since The Courtauld moved to Somerset House in 1989. Courtauld Connects, supported by £9.4m from The National Lottery Heritage Fund and donations from generous philanthropic foundations and individual supporters, will make The Courtauld’s world-class artworks, research and teaching accessible to even more people, and includes the current extensive restoration of its Grade I listed building at Somerset House.
Tzo Zen joined the Royal Academy in 2014, to implement transformational changes in the lead up to the RA’s 250th anniversary and major capital redevelopment project. As Chief Operating Officer she was responsible for strategy, finance, estates and facilities, technology, and people. Prior to the RA, Tzo Zen worked at the Royal Opera House and the management consultancy McKinsey and Company, where she advised clients across a wide range of industries on organisation and strategy matters. She holds a PhD from the University of Cambridge.
In her new role at The Courtauld, Tzo Zen will focus on the operational management of The Courtauld, particularly the key functions of Development, Marketing and Communications, Operations, People and Courtauld Connects. The role will help The Courtauld continue to build on founder Samuel Courtauld’s belief in the importance of “art for all”, and ensure that The Courtauld delivers against an ambitious set of strategic objectives, which include growing gallery audiences; continuing to attract and support a high-quality, inclusive student body; broadening the impact of academic research; building on existing partnerships and establishing new strategic relationships; and establishing a sustainable long-term business model.
Dr. Tzo Zen Ang, incoming Managing Director of The Courtauld, said:
“I am honoured and delighted to be joining The Courtauld as Managing Director at this exciting time. The Institute is building on its already stellar reputation with hugely inspiring transformation plans that will help it even better deliver its founding vision of ‘art for all’. I look forward to working with Professor Swallow and the entire team to bring this vision to life.”
The Courtauld Institute of Art is the world’s leading centre for the study of art history, conservation and curating. An independent college of the University of London, The Courtauld offers degree programmes from the BA to the PhD. Its alumni, a dynamic community of specialists, are leaders and innovators in the arts, culture and business worlds nationally and internationally, helping to shape the global agenda for the arts. The Courtauld Gallery is home to a celebrated collection of major works of art from the Renaissance to the Twentieth Century. It is most famous for its unrivalled collection of Impressionist and Post-Impressionist paintings, with masterpieces by artists ranging from Manet, Monet and Renoir to Ce?zanne, Van Gogh and Modigliani. Many of these works were acquired by the pioneering collector and philanthropist Samuel Courtauld in the 1920s and 1930s, when he was chairman of the textile firm Courtaulds Ltd. He went on to establish The Courtauld in 1932, with Sir Robert Witt and Viscount Lee of Fareham, as an institute dedicated to the teaching and public dissemination of art history and conservation. Today, The Courtauld continues his founding vision and is one of the world’s leading centres for the study and public enjoyment of art. As part of an ambitious transformation project that will make The Courtauld’s world-class artworks, research and teaching accessible to even more people, the gallery is closed until Spring 2021.
Courtauld Connects is a major, multi-million-pound transformation, the biggest programme of development since The Courtauld moved to Somerset House in 1989. This visionary project, supported by £9.4m from The National Lottery Heritage Fund and donations from generous philanthropic foundations and individual supporters, will make The Courtauld’s world-class artworks, research and teaching accessible to more people, both in the UK and internationally. The Courtauld is working with Stirling Prize-winning architects Witherford Watson Mann on the careful restoration of its important Grade I listed building at Somerset House. Phase One of the transformation project focuses on The Courtauld’s collection and built heritage, its conservation work and its public engagement. The second phase of the project will complete the physical connections between the Gallery and the Institute, creating deep links between the university’s outstanding research and curatorial offer. More information is available at connects.courtauld.ac.uk.
