Nicole Dowd
Head of Public Programs
Smithsonian National Museum of Asian Art
Nicole Dowd is the Head of Public Programs at the Smithsonian National Museum of Asian Art, overseeing planning and implementation of museum-wide public programs and community engagement. Previously she served as Head of Cultural Programming at Apple in Washington DC, developing public programs and piloting the Today at Apple Creative Studios teen program. Over the last decade she has worked with and mentored artists throughout the DC region, as Director of Arts Programs at Halcyon and Program Manager of the Hamiltonian Artists Fellowship. Nicole received a master’s degree in exhibition design from the Corcoran College of Arts and Design and studied fine art, art history and journalism at the George Washington University. She is passionate about building meaningful connections between artists, cultural practitioners, and organizations which can help to support and sustain their work. She was a 2023 participant in the National Museum of Korea Museum Network Fellowship program in Seoul, Korea. She currently serves on the Board of Directors at The Nicholson Project, a DC-based artist residency and community garden.