Barbara Young
Barbara Young worked at the Miami-Dade County Public Library System over a period of thirty years as an art librarian, curator and art services supervisor. An innovative arts leader, she initiated the Artmobile service, a "museum on wheels" that transported exhibitions to various locations throughout the County to broaden access to visual art; curated hundreds of exhibitions; and led an effort to restore an original pair of Raggedy Ann and Andy dolls, given to the Miami-Dade Public Library System in 1953 by the Gruelle family. A fabric researcher and island worker for Jeanne-Claude and Christo's Surrounded Islands Project for Biscayne Bay, Young has served as a panelist for the Miami-Dade County Art in Public Places Professional Advisory Committee and the National Endowment for the Humanities. Most notably, with art critic and historian Helen L. Kohen and Margarita Cano, she co-founded an impressive archive of Miami’s art history from 1945 onward, The Vasari Project, a visionary project that examined and upheld the contribution of our region’s artists to the field, with the support of Michael Spring, Director Emeritus of the Miami-Dade County Department of Cultural Affairs. Barbara Young is a pioneering art librarian, curator, and cultural archivist whose dedication has left a lasting impact on Miami’s visual arts history through innovative programming, landmark exhibitions, and the co-founding of The Vasari Project.