Harry Philbrick

{{short description|American art curator}}

Harry Lyman Philbrick (born September 25, 1958) is an American art curator who is the founding director of the nonprofit arts organization Philadelphia Contemporary.{{cite news|title = Philadelphia Contemporary Hires Artistic Director From Creative Time |last1=Chow |first1=Andrew |work=The New York Times |date=23 October 2017 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/23/arts/design/philadelphia-contemporary-nato-thompson.html }} He is Interim Executive Director at the Fabric Workshop and Museum. From 2011 to 2016, he was Director of the Museum at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts (PAFA),{{Cite news|title = Museum to raise up to $28M on sale of painting|date = August 28, 2013|url = http://www.bizjournals.com/philadelphia/news/2013/08/28/pafa-hopes-to-raise-up-to-28m-by.html|last = Van Allen|first = Peter|work = Philadelphia Business Journal|accessdate = August 28, 2013|url-status = live|archiveurl = https://archive.today/20130829001941/http://www.bizjournals.com/philadelphia/news/2013/08/28/pafa-hopes-to-raise-up-to-28m-by.html|archivedate = August 29, 2013}} and previously worked as Director of The Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum from 1996 to 2010.{{cite web|title = Harry Philbrick

|last1=Carey |first1=Brainard |url=https://museumofnonvisibleart.com/interviews/harry-philbrick/ |website=Museum of NonVisible Art|date=17 March 2018 }}

At PAFA, Philbrick developed community education programs and increased the amount of contemporary art in the museum's collection and exhibitions.{{cite web |title = PAFA Announces Departure of Harry Philbrick |url = https://www.pafa.org/press-room/press-release/pafa-announces-departure-harry-philbrick |website = Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts |access-date = 2019-02-11 |archive-date = 2019-02-12 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20190212130837/https://www.pafa.org/press-room/press-release/pafa-announces-departure-harry-philbrick |url-status = dead }} Philbrick started at The Aldrich Museum as Director of Education, developing a student docent program that trained young people to lead tours for their peers. Under Philbrick’s directorship, the Aldrich Museum expanded its exhibition space and created an education center and sculpture garden.{{cite web |title = The Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts Names Harry Philbrick as Director of Museum |url=http://artdaily.com/news/44341/The-Pennsylvania-Academy-of-the-Fine-Arts-Names-Harry-Philbrick-as-Director-of-Museum#.XGGckJNKjOR |website=Art Daily}}

He is the father of Inigo Philbrick, who was convicted of wire fraud in May 2022, sentenced to seven years in prison, and ordered to forfeit $86.7 million, for what has been described as the largest art fraud in American history.{{cite news |last1=Douglas |first1=Sarah |last2=Tully |first2=Judd |title=Who Is Inigo Philbrick? Meet the Man Behind One of the Biggest Potential Modern Art Scandals |url=https://www.artnews.com/art-news/news/inigo-philbrick-dealer-lawsuits-explained-1202670107/2/ |access-date=May 25, 2022 |work=Art News |date=December 3, 2019 |archive-date=May 25, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220525225105/https://www.artnews.com/art-news/news/inigo-philbrick-dealer-lawsuits-explained-1202670107/2/ |url-status=live }}{{cite news |last1=Alberge |first1=Dalya |title='He's sabotaged his entire life for greed': the $86m rise and fall of Inigo Philbrick |url=https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2022/may/25/inigo-philbrick-jailed-art-fraud |access-date=May 25, 2022 |work=The Guardian |date=May 25, 2022 |archive-date=May 25, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220525114104/https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2022/may/25/inigo-philbrick-jailed-art-fraud |url-status=live }}

Curated or co-curated exhibitions including:

• Living With Contemporary Art (1996, {{ISBN|978-1-888332-00-1}})
• The Nude in Contemporary Art (1999, {{ISBN|978-1-888332-10-0}})
• Ann Hamilton: Whitecloth (1999, {{ISBN|978-1-888332-09-4}})
• Faith: The Impact of Judeo-Christian Religion on Art at the Millennium (2000, {{ISBN|978-1-888332-12-4}})
• Janine Antoni: The Girl Made of Butter (2001, {{ISBN|1888332158}})
• Contemporary Erotic Drawing(2005, {{ISBN|978-1-888332-24-7}})
• Anselm Kiefer: Velimir Chlebnikov and the Sea(2006, {{ISBN|1888332298}})
• Voice & Void: Hall Curatorial Fellow Exhibition(2008, {{ISBN|188833231X}})
• Dive Deep: Eric Fischl and the Process of Painting(2012, {{ISBN|0943836417}})