The ‘Inner Worlds’ film series visits creatives in the places that inspire them

For decades, Thelma Golden has redefined what a museum can be. As director and chief curator of the Studio Museum in Harlem, she has expanded the possibilities for artists of African descent and reshaped how Black culture is represented in contemporary art.

In this episode of ‘Inner Worlds’, Golden reflects on the museum’s newly reopened, purpose-built home – a space that fulfills the ambition imagined by its founders – a group of artists, community activists, philanthropists, and civic leaders – in 1968. ‘We wanted the design of the building to echo what the Studio Museum has always been,’ she notes, ‘but to create new spaces that allow us to offer so much more.’ Since its earliest days, the Museum has been a place where artists of African descent are centered, where Harlem’s community meets contemporary art, and where openness and accessibility shape every encounter. Rooted in Harlem both geographically and spiritually, the new building carries this ethos forward while offering expanded capacity for exhibitions, artists, and community.

Golden speaks about the long journey from closure to reopening, the vision embedded in the architecture, and the generations of staff, artists, and audiences whose contributions made this moment possible. It is a portrait of an institution entering a new chapter – and of the leader who has guided it there.

Inner Worlds | museum director Thelma Golden was produced in collaboration with Nowness.