Conversations | Can institutions rewrite themselves? 

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Patrick Elliott, Curator of Modern Paintings, National Gallery, London Jessica Morgan,&nbsp;Nathalie de Gunzburg Director, Dia Art Foundation,&nbsp;New York&nbsp; Moderator: Charlotte Burns, journalist, London How do institutions build collections – and for whom? The National Gallery in London recently announced a groundbreaking shift with Project Domani, which will see one of the world’s leading collections of Western painting extend its holdings beyond 1900. The Dia Art Foundation – best known for Dia Beacon and its long-term stewardship of site-specific and Land Art projects – has consistently reconsidered the stories a collection tells through boundary-pushing displays and acquisitions. In this conversation, Patrick Elliott, the curator of Modern paintings at the National Gallery in London, and Jessica Morgan, the director of the Dia Art Foundation in New York, reflect on these developments and on the power of collections to shape and reshape art history. From widening the canon to reaching new audiences, they ask how institutions can radically evolve while staying true to themselves. Patrick Elliott was the chief curator at the National Galleries of Scotland for over 30 years until February 2026. There, he organized major exhibitions of artists including René Magritte, Alberto Giacometti, Richard Long, Tracey Emin, and Andy Goldsworthy. In March 2026, he was appointed the first curator of Modern paintings at the National Gallery in London, where his role will be to create a world-class collection of paintings extending beyond the Gallery’s existing terminus date of 1900.  Jessica Morgan is the director of the Dia Art Foundation. Morgan is responsible for strengthening and activating all parts of Dia’s multivalent program, including its pioneering Land Art projects, site-specific commissions, collections, and programming across its constellation of sites. Since 2018, Morgan has led a comprehensive, multi-year project to upgrade and revitalize Dia’s programmatic spaces. Prior to assuming her position at Dia, Morgan was the curator of international art at Tate Modern, London from 2010 to 2014. Charlotte Burns is a journalist and founder of Studio Burns and the cofounder of The Burns Halperin Report. She is also host and producer of the podcast The Art World: What If…?! with Schwartzman&. She has written for publications including The Financial Times, The New York Times, The Guardian, Monocle, and Cultured magazine and was formerly the US market, news, and business editor for The Art Newspaper.

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