The Hepworth Wakefield in West Yorkshire has appointed Olivia Colling as executive director and Laura Smith as artistic director, filling the leadership void left by former director Simon Wallis, who departed last summer to lead the Royal Academy of Arts. Colling, who joined the gallery in 2015, previously oversaw commercial income and capital projects, while Smith, who arrived in 2022, has focused on expanding the collection and curated a Helen Chadwick retrospective in 2025; her upcoming exhibition features the late Indian sculptor Mrinalini Mukherjee.
The appointments come as the gallery marks its 15th anniversary and underscore a strategic push to strengthen financial sustainability and international reputation. Both directors are Yorkshire-born and have proven track records in fundraising, commercial growth, and curatorial ambition, positioning the institution to build on its status as a major regional gallery that won the Art Fund Museum of the Year in 2017.