In Conversation With…Megan Fontanella, Curator of Gabriele Münter: Contours of a World at the Guggenheim Museum
October 2025
Our conversation with Megan marks her 20th anniversary at the Guggenheim: “It’s been a poignant moment for me to reflect on how I got here. Art was always part of my life but not in an intentional way. I grew up in Connecticut with a family that didn’t frequent museums or talk about the arts. However, we were creative and always making art – my mother loved to paint, and my engineer father played the piano.”
It was Megan’s years at Dartmouth College that planted the art history seed: “I was interested in the performing arts so thought I was going to be a theatre major. But I took an introductory Art History course with Professor Angela Rosenthal and immediately changed my mind.” She attributes her internship at the college’s Hood Museum of Art for showing her the possibilities of a career in the art world: “University museums are modestly scaled institutions; they do such beautiful work with a small staff, and I learned all the facets of working on an exhibition. It was all hands-on deck, and my time there set me up for a career focused on stewarding collections and creating space for dialogue.”
After Dartmouth College, Megan moved across the pond to pursue a Master’s at the Courtauld Institute in London: “My focus was on 19th century French art so being able to do field research and visit monuments in Paris was incredible. I credit the Courtauld with honing my research skills.”
After graduating from the Courtauld, she reached out to her mentor at the Guggenheim where she interned the summer before moving to the UK: “I was fortunate that there was an opening because those curatorial opportunities are few and far between. I joined as a curatorial assistant, researching the collections and enriching our object history, whether it was filling in gaps in the provenance or working on archives.” She adds: “This was 20 years ago, so my role has changed quite a bit since! Today, as Curator of Modern Art and Provenance, my work toggles between collection-based exhibitions, loan-based exhibitions, collections, research, and more recently fundraising.” While her role is based in NYC, Megan also curates exhibitions across the many Guggenheim museums: “While we are rooted in our local communities, we are also a global constellation. I’m a lifelong learner so I enjoy catering to different set of audiences; it keeps me on my toes.”
Megan has been rooting for a Gabriele Münter retrospective for two decades: “Gabriele Münter has been a twinkle in my eye since I first saw her work at the Courtauld in 2005. The Guggenheim is interested in expanding the story of art. When you look at early 20th century western art, she is central, co-founding an artists’ affiliation, the ‘Blue Rider’ group. However, somewhere in the 1920s and 1930s, her story recedes. Our aim is to bring it back to life. ‘Gabriele Münter: Contours of a World’ will be her first NYC museum show, with a focus on her paintings from 1908 to 1920. It will also include her later less well-known works and 19 photographs she took while she was in the United States from 1898 to 1900.”
When asked about a favorite piece, Megan admits it changes frequently: “I’m one for hidden gems, I love the understated works that beg you to spend more time with them. ‘Still Life on the Tram (After Shopping)’, ca. 1909-12, is one of them. Gabriele didn’t show this work until the end of her life but it’s innovative and reminds me of her photography. The other work I keep coming back to is ‘Still Life With Mirror’, ca?, which has a lot of layering and light. These two paintings reflect the way she teases a line between offering and withholding information, compelling the viewers to look more closely.”
She notes how grateful the museum is for philanthropic support: “The Huo Family Foundation’s brilliant support has been instrumental in bringing the show to life. Philanthropy is critical, and it is important now more than ever to support the arts. I think folks take for granted that we have these institutions in our lives that enrich us, open our worldviews, help us connect with one another, and remind us of our shared humanity.”
Gabriele Münter: Contours of a World is supported by the Huo Family Foundation with a grant of $100,000 and opens to the public on 7 November 2025.