Ellen Owens, director of the Castellani Art Museum of Niagara University, has been named the new director of the American Visionary Art Museum (AVAM), the Baltimore museum announced on Friday. She starts in the role on June 23.

The hiring ends a 10-month national search for a new leader of AVAM, the country’s designated repository and educational center for visionary, or self-taught, art.

The Middlesburg, Pennsylvania, native said she’s long studied visionary art, which AVAM describes as art “from an innate personal vision that revels foremost in the creative act itself.” Most featured artists there have no formal training.

“The spirit and the inclusiveness of AVAM are very much in alignment with my own spirit and interest in making museums as accessible as possible,” said Owens, 43, on Friday morning. “I really can’t think of a place that I’m better suited for.”

Owens’ appointment follows a period of change for the museum, which opened on Key Highway in Federal Hill in 1995. After founder and director Rebecca Alban Hoffberger retired in 2022, Jenenne Whitfield took over as director, only to abruptly part ways with AVAM in September 2023, roughly a year into the role.

At the time, AVAM’s Board of Directors Chair Christopher Goelet described the decision as “deeply unfortunate,” while Gregory Tucker, AVAM’s strategic communications adviser, attributed the break-up to “honest disagreements” between the board and Whitfield. Last year, Whitfield was named Harborplace’s director of experience. Hoffberger returned as artistic director as AVAM began its search for Whitfield’s successor.

Owens said the museum is focused on moving forward.

“It’s a beloved institution, and to make all of the magic happen there, it really needs the capital and the people and the volunteers to move into the future successfully,” she said.

Owens found success on that front rather quickly at Castellani, which is just outside of Buffalo, New York. In three years, she increased visitorship by 52% and membership by 100%, and contributed income by 192%, according to the hiring announcement’s press release.

She said she aims to build strong relationships with funders, community members and locals.

“I think one of the keys is really trying to re-engage visitors to make AVAM a place you go more than once a year,” Owens said.

At a time when the Trump administration is eliminating funding for arts organizations with diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives, Owens said AVAM is committed to serving any and all art fans. The museum does not receive any direct federal funding, Tucker said.

AVAM must make sure “that we are absolutely standing as a space to be inclusive and to welcome people, especially as they work through some challenging times right now,” she said.

The future Canton resident said she’s visited Baltimore “many times” over the past 15 years, becoming a fan of the restaurant scene and, naturally, its cultural arts. Now, Owens is ready to explore much more in her new role.

“There are certainly gaps in my understanding of the city, and one of my great excitements is to fill in the blanks and understand more about all of the communities and what makes every bit of Baltimore special,” she said. “But there’s a particular energy here that I feel aligns with my own spirit, so I’m excited to be a part of that big Baltimore energy.”