The outgoing Director of the Serpentine Galleries, Julia Peyton-Jones has been made a Dame in the Queen’s birthday honours in recognition of her 25 years of service to the Serpentine.  

Michael R. Bloomberg, Founder of Bloomberg LP and Bloomberg Philanthropies, three-term Mayor of New York City, and Serpentine Galleries Chairman since January 2014, said: "On behalf of everyone at the Serpentine Galleries, and as a longtime friend and admirer of Julia's, I am delighted to congratulate her on this outstanding and well-deserved achievement. Under Julia's leadership, the Serpentine has grown from a small local gallery into an internationally recognised art space with a global reputation for artistic excellence and architectural innovation. Julia's exceptional determination and vision have had an enormous impact on the Serpentine, the UK and the global arts community. It is fitting that her contributions to culture are being recognised with this important honour.” 

Julia Peyton-Jones steps down as Director of the Serpentine Galleries in July. Together with Hans Ulrich Obrist as Co-Director of Exhibitions and Programmes and Director of International Projects, they have made the Serpentine one of the most successful galleries internationally, attracting up to 1.2 million visitors a year, and one which is highly respected by leading artists worldwide for championing new ideas in contemporary art. 

An exciting new chapter has begun at the Serpentine with the announcement in April of its new leadership with Yana Peel, co-founder of Outset Contemporary Art Fund and CEO of Intelligence Squared, appointed CEO in partnership with Hans Ulrich Obrist as Artistic Director. 

Julia Peyton-Jones studied painting at the Royal College of Art, London, and worked as a practising artist in London and a lecturer in fine art at Edinburgh College of Art. She moved to the Hayward Gallery in 1988 as Curator in the Exhibitions Department. In 1991 she became Director of the Serpentine Gallery, where she has been responsible for both commissioning and showcasing the groundbreaking Exhibitions, Education and Public Programmes as well as the annual architecture commission, the Serpentine Gallery Pavilion, which she conceived in 2000 – a project that has been expanded this year to include four Summer Houses. 

Under the patronage of Diana, Princess of Wales, the Serpentine completed a £4 million renovation in 1998. Since then visitor numbers have increased three-fold to approximately 1.2 million in any one year. In 2010, the Serpentine won the Licence from The Royal Parks to operate an additional Gallery in Kensington Gardens. The Serpentine Sackler Gallery opened in 2013 following a donation from the Dr Mortimer and Theresa Sackler Foundation that was the largest in the history of the Serpentine Galleries. Renovated by Pritzker Prize-winning architect Zaha Hadid, it doubles the Serpentine’s size. 

Serving on numerous committees and panels, she was made an Honorary Fellow of the Royal College of Art in 1997. In 2003 she was made both an Honorary Fellow of the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) and appointed an Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (OBE). In 2008 she was made Professor, University of the Arts, London, and Senior Fellow of the Royal College of Art (RCA) in the same year. Amongst other global conferences, she has regularly attended the World Economic Forum, Davos, Switzerland. 

Top image: Julia Peyton-Jones, image © Greg Funnell 2013

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