Rachel Herschman is the inaugural Exhibitions and Publications Program Director at Yale’s Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library, one of the world’s largest repositories of its kind. Exhibitions at the Beinecke present original scholarship to welcome new audiences, support teaching and learning, and foster community engagement. Rooted in rigorous research, these exhibitions share the stories of the cultures and histories represented in the collection in accessible ways.
In her role, Herschman has expanded the program by broadening the range of exhibitions on view and engaging curators from across the Yale community to invite new perspectives on the collection.
Before joining the Beinecke in 2023, Herschman held curatorial positions at NYU’s Institute for the Study of the Ancient World and The Jewish Museum. Her past exhibitions often united ancient, modern, and contemporary art, including Hymn to Apollo: The Ancient World and the Ballet Russes and Restoring the Minoans: Elizabeth Price and Sir Arthur Evans. Prior to her work at The Jewish Museum, Herschman was an educator at the Tenement Museum.
A scholar of modern art, performance, and cultural history, she holds a BA from McGill University and an MA and PhD from the University of Washington.