Curator, artist, and cultural worker Jodi Minnis-Rolle has been appointed Curatorial Director at the National Art Gallery of The Bahamas. She joins the team from TERN Gallery, where she spent four years as gallery manager and curated notable exhibitions including Inherited Values, To All Who Come to This Happy Place: Welcome, andFIVE, an exhibition of emerging artists.

This appointment comes as NAGB enters a new chapter under the leadership of MaelynnFord, who took the helm as Executive Director in January 2025. Minnis-Rolle steps in at amoment of growth for both the museum and broader creative community.

“Hiring Jodi is a strategic move not just for NAGB, but for The Bahamas. She brings themomentum we need right now. She is exceedingly knowledgeable about Bahamian art andhas a clear vision for the museum’s future,” Director Ford shared. “Jodi understands how tonavigate the Bahamian cultural landscape while opening conversations that connect us to theregion and beyond.”

For Minnis-Rolle, the appointment represents an opportunity to serve an institution thatshaped her own artistic development. “Curating for a national institution is a great honourand responsibility,” she said. “At its core, it is about serving our people, stewarding ourhistory, telling our stories, and creating pathways for all people to interact with theirmuseum.”

Minnis-Rolle has a longstanding relationship with NAGB and the creative arts community,having previously worked with the institution as a gallery assistant, guest curator, andcontributing writer. She co-authored From Columbus to Junkanoo: Bahamian HistoryThrough Art with Averia Wright, a 2016 NAGB exhibition and catalogue that examinedBahamian history through visual culture.

Her writing has also appeared in April Bey: The Opulent Blerd (Lancaster Museum of Art andHistory, 2023) and The Whimsical Collector (National Art Gallery of The Bahamas, 2023).Most recently, she contributed to Poetics of Architecture, the seventh volume of ForgottenLands, an independent publication dedicated to Caribbean art and cultural dialogue. Her workhas connected Bahamian art and visual culture to key regional Caribbean networks andinternational art platforms.

On her curatorial approach, Minnis-Rolle said, “My practice is grounded in stewardship,care, and collaboration. NAGB has a history of critical, engaging, and innovative exhibitions, and I look forward to stewarding that legacy while bolstering the educational and socialundercurrent that sustains the museum.”

Minnis-Rolle received the Popop Junior Residency Prize in 2014 and participated in theCaribbean Linked III residency programme in 2015. In 2020, she received the PrimeMinister’s Cup award from the Ministry of Youth, Sports, and Culture. She holds anAssociate of Arts degree in art from the University of The Bahamas and studied towards aBachelor of Fine Arts at the University of Tampa.

As a multidisciplinary artist with an active practice, she has been reviewed by leading artspublications like Hyperallergic and Burnaway and has exhibited locally and internationally,including here at NAGB. Her career reflects a sustained engagement with contemporaryculture, spanning curatorial practice, arts writing, cultural consultation, and community-basedwork.

“NAGB was where I first realised I could be an artist, where I began my training as an artsadministrator, where I was introduced to critical Caribbean literature, and where I gatheredwith friends at openings,” Minnis-Rolle said. “Stepping into this role now is an opportunityto be expansive about programming, partnerships, and community while staying rooted in thehistory of this institution.”

Minnis-Rolle assumes her role as Curatorial Director effective immediately.