John Brantley Hightower (May 23, 1933 – July 6, 2013) was a director of the

Museum of Modern Art The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) is an art museum located in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, on 53rd Street between Fifth and Sixth Avenues. It plays a major role in developing and collecting modern art, and is often identified as one of ...

, the

South Street Seaport The South Street Seaport is a historic area in the New York City borough of Manhattan, centered where Fulton Street meets the East River, and adjacent to the Financial District, in Lower Manhattan. The Seaport is a designated historic district ...

Museum, and the

Mariners' Museum The Mariners' Museum and Park is located in Newport News, Virginia, United States. Designated as America’s ''National Maritime Museum'' by Congress, it is one of the largest maritime museums in North America. The Mariners' Museum Library, cont ...

Biography

Hightower was born in

Atlanta, Georgia Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,7 ...

and moved with his family to

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

, New York when he was one. He attended the

Northfield Mount Hermon School Northfield Mount Hermon School, often called NMH, is a co-educational preparatory school in Gill, Massachusetts, in the United States. It is a member of the Eight Schools Association. Present day NMH offers nearly 200 courses, including AP a ...

, a private boarding school in Massachusetts. He graduated

Yale University Yale University is a Private university, private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Sta ...

in 1955. He served two years in the Marines after graduation. From 1957 to 1961 he was in an executive training program at

First National City Bank Citibank, N. A. (N. A. stands for " National Association") is the primary U.S. banking subsidiary of financial services multinational Citigroup. Citibank was founded in 1812 as the City Bank of New York, and later became First National City ...

. In 1961 he became an assistant to the president and publisher of

American Heritage Publishing Company ''American Heritage'' is a magazine dedicated to covering the history of the United States for a mainstream readership. Until 2007, the magazine was published by Forbes.

. He was executive director of the

New York State Council on the Arts The New York State Council on the Arts (NYSCA) is an arts council serving the U.S. state of New York. It was established in 1960 through a bill introduced in the New York State Legislature by New York State Senator MacNeil Mitchell (1905–1996 ...

from 1964 to 1970 where his budget went from $500,000 his first year to $22 million his last year. On May 1, 1970, he assumed the position of director of the Museum of Modern Art. Hightower's tenure at the museum was marked by the unionizing of its work force into the Professional and Administrative Staff Association (PASTA) which also went on strike. He resigned from his position on January 5, 1972. From 1977 to 1993 he was president of the

South Street Seaport Museum The South Street Seaport is a historic area in the New York City borough of Manhattan, centered where Fulton Street meets the East River, and adjacent to the Financial District, in Lower Manhattan. The Seaport is a designated historic district, ...

From 1993 to 2006 he was president and Director of the

, a period which included establishing the USS Monitor Center and Conservation Laboratory.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hightower, John B. 1933 births 2013 deaths People from Atlanta Yale University alumni Directors of museums in the United States People associated with the Museum of Modern Art (New York City) People from New York City South Street Seaport Northfield Mount Hermon School alumni