Ngaire Blankenberg

Ngaire Blankenberg (born ) is a Canadian-born South African museum designer, consultant, and administrator. She is a former director of the Smithsonian National Museum of African Art.

Early life and education Blankenberg's parents are South African and she was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba. She earned a journalism degree from Carleton University and worked for 12 years in television and documentaries, including a year as a videographer on the CBC newsmagazine series Road Movies, before moving to South Africa to study media and cultural studies, earning a masters degree from the University of Natal. She moved back to Canada and began working as a museum designer and consultant. She is noted for her expertise in developing decolonization plans for cultural institutions as well as concept development and public engagement. In 2016, along with Lord co-founder Gail Lord, she co-edited Cities, Museums and Soft Power for the American Alliance of Museums. When she was appointed director on July 7, 2021, she announced her ambition to "redefine, heal and reconcile". and in 2022 the museum returned 29 looted Benin Bronzes to Nigeria. Blankenberg resigned from her position on March 31, 2023, citing "individual and institutional resistance".

Selected publications