Artforum selects Tina Rivers Ryan as its new top editor

Artforum named Tina Rivers Ryan as its next top editor on Thursday, selecting the curator to lead the prestigious magazine after a tumultuous year.

“For decades, Artforum’s editors have ensured that this landmark magazine remains a trusted and indispensable source for conversations about contemporary art and its role in the broader culture,” said Ryan, who specialized in digital art as a curator at Buffalo AKG Art Museum, said in a statement.

Five months ago, the magazine fired David Velasco, editor-in-chief, after he signed and published a letter calling for Palestinian liberation shortly after the war between Israel and Hamas began. Some staff members were angry about his dismissal; Old editors resigned in protest and artists declared a boycott. Some writers withdrew their essays and some advertisers withdrew their spots in the publication, resulting in a noticeably smaller issue after events unfolded.

Penske Media Corporation, which owns the publication, has been trying to rebuild it in recent months.

Ryan, who has contributed to Artforum over the years, received attention for a popular essay criticizing the NFT boom. She later softened her stance and helped the Buffalo museum raise money for the craze by creating a online exhibition and fundraising.

“We couldn’t be more excited about this next chapter of Artforum, with Tina leading the editorial team,” the magazine’s publishers, Danielle McConnell and Kate Koza, said in a statement. “Tina is a brilliant writer and uniquely positioned to uphold the magazine’s reputation for publishing long-form criticism of the highest quality, while also contributing to a dynamic vision of audience expansion through continued digital growth and live events.”