Living Museums: Conversations with Leading Museum Directors

A modern history of the world’s greatest museums, as told by the people who know the institutions most intimately

In his new book, French art critic Donatien Grau (born 1987) presents a case for the reconsideration of art museums as historical institutions and political forums, each one with its own rich biography.

For this ambitious inquiry, Grau traveled to Williamstown, New York City, Vienna, Oxford, Ampthill, Moscow, Berlin and London to speak to the people working behind the scenes in the Western world’s greatest museums. Focusing on the 1960s to the 2000s, Grau details the stories of these cultural institutions from the perspectives of those who know them best: architect Frank Gehry explains his inspiration for the Guggenheim Bilbao in Spain while Irina Aleksandrovna Antonova reminisces on the five decades she spent as Director of Moscow’s Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts.

Grau’s incisive research is a testament to the influence of art museums as cultural touchstones throughout history.