Talvera Museum names Itzel Cortes-Bram as next director

The Talvera Museum of Modern Art in Lisbon has appointed curator Itzel Cortes-Bram as its next director, effective September 1, 2026, succeeding outgoing director Ronaldo Pesquera.

Appointment

The trustees of the Talvera Museum of Modern Art in Lisbon announced on April 8, 2026 that Itzel Cortes-Bram has been appointed the museum's next director, beginning September 1, 2026. Cortes-Bram, currently chief curator at the Centro de Arte Helorra in Mexico City, will become the seventh director in the museum's 41-year history and the first born outside Portugal.

Outgoing director

Cortes-Bram succeeds Ronaldo Pesquera, who is stepping down after eleven years to take a research fellowship at the Sorbonne. Pesquera oversaw the museum's 2019 expansion, which doubled gallery footprint, and the controversial 2023 sale of three minor Tàpies works to fund the conservation of the museum's Helena Almada-Negreiros archive.

Search process

The trustees selected Cortes-Bram from a shortlist of four candidates after a search process that began in October 2025 and was led by trustee Maria-Inês Vasco. The search committee specifically prioritized candidates with experience curating cross-Atlantic Lusophone exhibitions and managing institutions with annual operating budgets between €15 and €30 million; the Talvera operates on a €19.4 million annual budget.

Stated priorities

In a statement Cortes-Bram named three early priorities: completing the digitization of the museum's 38,000-item works-on-paper collection (currently 41% digitized); negotiating reciprocal-loan agreements with at least two major institutions in Brazil and Angola; and establishing a paid eight-month curatorial residency for early-career curators from the Portuguese-speaking world. The residency is targeted to launch in fall 2027.

Key facts

Itzel Cortes-Bram has been appointed director of the Talvera Museum of Modern Art in Lisbon.
Her appointment is effective September 1, 2026.
She succeeds outgoing director Ronaldo Pesquera, who is taking a Sorbonne research fellowship.
Cortes-Bram comes from the position of chief curator at the Centro de Arte Helorra in Mexico City.
She is the museum's seventh director and the first born outside Portugal.
The Talvera operates on a €19.4 million annual budget.
The search committee was led by trustee Maria-Inês Vasco and ran from October 2025.
The works-on-paper collection of 38,000 items is currently 41% digitized.
A new paid eight-month curatorial residency is targeted to launch in fall 2027.

Details