Michael E. Shapiro became the Nancy and Holcombe T. Green, Jr. director of the High Museum of Art in 2000 and joined the High’s leadership in 1995. He has overseen the reinstallation of the Museum’s permanent collection, and spearheaded the High’s 177,000 square-foot expansion by Renzo Piano in 2005. He launched the three-year Louvre Atlanta partnership, which brought artworks from the Louvre collection between 2006 and 2009. Shapiro continues to engage the High in partnerships with art institutions, both domestically and internationally, including the National Galleries of Scotland, Edinburgh, The Museum of Modern Art, New York, and Art Gallery of Ontario. The collaboration with the latter led to the High being the sole U.S. venue for “Frida & Diego: Passion, Politics, and Painting” Shapiro received his

PhD degree from Harvard University, MA from Williams College, and BA from Hamilton College. His expertise is 19th- and 20th-century painting and sculpture. He has been awarded two of France’s top cultural honors, the Officier des Arts et des Lettres, 2011 and Chevalier de l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres, 2005 for his partnership with France in advancement of the arts. Shapiro is affiliated with Michael Getty Leadership Institute, the Atlanta Convention and Visitors Bureau, the Board of Terra Foundation for American Art, Committee on the Visual Arts at Hamilton College, External Review Committee for Smithsonian Institution Art Museums, Bizot Group, Visiting Committee for Harvard University Art Museum, Association of Art Museum Directors.