Martin-Gropius-Bau in Berlin has appointed art historian Stephanie Rosenthal, currently chief curator of the Hayward Gallery in London, as its new CEO and director. Rosenthal will succeed longtime director Gereon Sievernich and will take up the post on February 1, 2018.

Monika Grütters, chair of the search committee and the minister of cultural affairs, approved the decision at a board meeting on Wednesday, March 8. She said that Rosenthal “is very well connected as an exhibitor and enjoys great respect in the international art scene,” and she thanked the outgoing director Sievernich for his “extraordinarily successful work.”

A Munich native, Rosenthal worked as a curator and project manager at the Haus der Kunst in Munich for ten years before joining Hayward Gallery in 2007. She served as the artistic director for the Twentieth Sydney Biennale, which took place last year, and has organized large-scale monographic exhibitions for artists such as Pipilotti Rist and Ana Mendieta. She has also worked closely with various performance artists, including Paul McCarthy, Allan Kaprow, and Christoph Schlingensief.

“In my view the institution’s unique history and location—right next to the former Berlin Wall—challenges us to engage with our own historical position,” Rosenthal said. “In different cities around the world, working with artists such as Pipilotti Rist, Dayanita Singh, Lee Bul, and Allan Kaprow, I have explored new and immersive exhibition formats that can involve, question, and inspire visitors. I take my own inspiration and guidance from artists and I will work with them as we continue to build an institution that is an ‘agency for action’ in our turbulent times, aiming always to be more inventive and more inclusive.”