Leslie Anderson
BA ‘04, MA '06 | Seattle, WA
TITLE: Director of Collections, Exhibitions & Programs
COMPANY: National Nordic Museum
INDUSTRY: Arts
Leslie Anderson spearheads the National Nordic Museum’s creative vision as its Director of Collections, Exhibitions, and Programs. She organized major exhibitions with Sweden’s Nationalmuseum and Finland’s National Gallery, collaborated with Jónsi—vocalist for the world-famous band Sigur Rós—on his first art exhibition at a US museum, and developed programs featuring Iceland’s President, Ministers of Iceland and Finland, and Ambassadors of Denmark, Finland, and Norway. For COP26, she directed planning of an industry-leading symposium—co-presented with the American Alliance of Museums, the International Council of Museums, and the UK’s National Museum Directors’ Council—that convened speakers in 7 countries to discuss the impact of climate change on Arctic museums. Recently, Leslie participated in a delegation of art experts sent by Norway’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs to Oslo for the unveiling of the Nasjonalmuseet. Leslie held curatorial positions at Utah Museum of Fine Arts and Indianapolis Museum of Art and taught courses at Brooklyn College and Parsons School of Design. She published in 10 academic journals, curated 20+ exhibitions, and acquired 1,000+ works of art for museum collections. Leslie won the international Association of Art Museum Curators (AAMC) Award for Excellence (First Place) and the Utah Museums Association Award for Excellence. She is a contributing author for AAMC’s latest best practices guide and a member of the editorial board of the international journal Arts. In 2022, Leslie was appointed by Mayor Bruce Harrell to the Seattle Arts Commission. Previously, Salt Lake City’s then-Mayor Jackie Biskupski selected her for the City’s Art Design Board. A former Fulbright scholar, Leslie earned graduate degrees at CUNY Graduate Center and UF, where she also completed a BA. She is Seattle Gator Club’s VP Finance, a UF-AHA Expansion Committee Member, and a third-generation Gator grad.
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