Lonnie Bunch

Lonnie Bunch was the Founding Director of the wildly popular new Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture (NMAAHC) until 2019. Now, he’s been named the 14th Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution, the world’s largest musuem and research complex. In 2017, State of the Arts was there as Lonnie Bunch received the Newark Museum‘s John Cotton Dana Award for Visionary Leadership in Museums. In the early 20th century, Dana transformed the museum experience, from one focused on rare objects to one focused on history and education.

State of the Arts goes an exclusive tour with Lonnie Bunch of some of the most meaningful objects at the NMAAHC, and hears about how his childhood in Belleville, New Jersey, including school visits to the nearby Newark Museum, motivated his career.

Produced by Susan Wallner; Narrated by Dan Gordon; Videography by Tony Furlow and Joe Conlon.