John Daniel Tilford

Curator of Collections and Development Associate

Contact: [email protected]

A native of Murfreesboro, Tennessee, John completed his bachelor’s degree in art history at the University of Memphis while interning at the Memphis Brooks Museum of Art. He obtained his master’s degree in the history of art at Balliol College at the University of Oxford. He was awarded a fellowship at the University of the South in 2006 before being appointed Curator of Special Collections in 2011. He began his appointment at Oglethorpe University Museum of Art in Atlanta in 2013 and was promoted to Curator of Collections in 2015. During his tenure at OUMA the museum’s permanent collection has grown by more than 600%. His research interests focus on underserved voices and unspoken narratives. Notable exhibitions include Hattie Saussy: Rediscovery of an Artist (2017) and Mattie Lou O’Kelley: The Long Journey to Success (2022). He also serves as supervisor of the museum’s inaugural visual artist-in-residence program as well as being an Adjunct Professor of Museum Studies.