Subject: GOVERNOR CUOMO DESIGNATES BARBARALEE DIAMONSTEIN-SPIELVOGEL AS CHAIR OF THE NEW YORK STATE COUNCIL ON THE ARTS
From: NYC Landmarks50 <[email-masked]>
To: "Barbaralee Diamonstein-Spielvogel ([email-masked])" <[email-masked]>
Date: Mon, 25 Apr 2016 15:11:23 -0400

*For Immediate Release:* 4/25/2016

*GOVERNOR ANDREW M. CUOMO*

State of New York | Executive Chamber

Andrew M. Cuomo | Governor

*GOVERNOR CUOMO DESIGNATES BARBARALEE DIAMONSTEIN-SPIELVOGEL AS CHAIR OF
THE NEW YORK STATE COUNCIL ON THE ARTS*

Governor Andrew M. Cuomo today announced the designation of Barbaralee
Diamonstein-Spielvogel as Chair of the New York State Council on the Arts,
where she currently serves as Vice Chair.

“Barbaralee has dedicated her career to preserving and enriching cultural
life across the state and across the nation,” *Governor Cuomo said.* “She
is a leader whose knowledge, wide experience and energy will help shape our
vision for cultural development and advance the future of the arts in New
York."

“It is a privilege and an honor to serve as Chair of NYSCA,” *said
Barbaralee Diamonstein-Spielvogel.* “The arts are integral to enhancing New
York’s environment and values. I look forward to working with Governor
Cuomo to move forward as we build on our past, and continue to develop all
of the arts statewide.”

Throughout her career, Dr. Barbaralee Diamonstein-Spielvogel has served as
a leading voice on civic and cultural engagement, having demonstrated a
strong commitment to the arts, architecture, design, and public policy
across New York City, New York State, and the country.

A former White House staff assistant, in 1966, she became the first
Director of the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs. She later
served as the longest-term Commissioner of the New York City Landmarks
Preservation Commission from 1972 until 1987, and from 1987 to 1995, served
as Chair of the New York City Landmarks Preservation Foundation. She has
served as a member of the New York City Art Commission (now the Public
Design Commission) and the New York City Commission of Cultural Affairs for
more than a decade.

In 1987, she was appointed by President Reagan to the Board of the U.S.
Holocaust Memorial Museum and in 1996 was appointed by President Clinton to
the U.S. Commission of Fine Arts, where she later became the first woman to
be elected as Vice Chair. In 2009, President Obama appointed her to the
American Battle Monuments Commission.

Dr. Diamonstein-Spielvogel has served on the boards of a variety of
educational, visual, literary, and performing arts institutions, including
the Brooklyn Academy of Music, the Visiting Committee for Drawings at the
Metropolitan Museum of Art; the Collection Committee of the Smithsonian
Cooper Hewitt National Design Museum; the PEN American Center; the New York
State Historic Archives Partnership Trust; and the Corcoran Gallery of Art
in Washington, D.C. She is the founder and chair of the New York City
Landmarks50 Alliance, and a founding member of the Highline, New York City,
the Trust for the National Mall and the Museum of African Art in
Washington, D.C.

Dr. Diamonstein-Spielvogel is the author of 23 books and the curator of
eight international museum exhibitions. She earned her doctorate with high
honors from New York University, and received honorary doctorates from the
Maryland Institute College of Art, Longwood University, and the Pratt
Institute.

*About NYSCA*

The New York State Council on the Arts is dedicated to preserving and
expanding the rich and diverse cultural resources that are and will become
the heritage of New York’s citizens. The Council believes in supporting
artistic excellence and the creative freedom of artists without censure,
the rights of all New Yorkers to access and experience the power of the
arts and culture, and the vital contribution the arts make to the quality
of life in New York communities. NYSCA, serving all 62 counties, strives to
achieve its mission through its core grant-making activity and by convening
field leaders, providing information and advisory support, and working with
partners on special initiatives to achieve mutual goals.

###

Additional news available at www.governor.ny.gov

New York State | Executive Chamber |
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