Sir Mark Ellis Powell Jones (born 5 February 1951[1]) is a British art historian, numismatist and museum director; from 2001 to 2011 he was director of the Victoria and Albert Museum. Jones is the current Master of Saint Cross College, Oxford.[2]
Son of the writer and historian Ann Paludan, Jones read Politics, Philosophy and Economics at Worcester College, Oxford, before taking an MA degree in art history at the Courtauld Institute of Art. He spent 18 years in the Department of Coins and Medals at the British Museum, where he curated the acclaimed exhibition FAKE? The Art of Deception. In 1992 he was appointed director of the National Museums of Scotland, and here he gained a high reputation. He oversaw the creation in 1998 of the Museum of Scotland, which went on to win 22 prizes for its displays and a Stirling Prize nomination for its building. In May 2001 Jones became director of the Victoria and Albert Museum. On his first day as director, he announced the scrapping of entry charges to the museum.[3] Under his directorship a number of important renewal projects have been completed, including the Medieval and Renaissance galleries which opened in 2009.[4]
Jones is Chairman of the National Museum Directors’ Conference, a trustee of the National Trust, the Gilbert Collection, and the Pilgrim Trust, a member of the Court and Council of the Royal College of Art, Vice President of the British Art Medal Society and the Kensington & Chelsea Decorative & Fine Arts Society, and a patron of the Embroiderers' Guild and the Heritage Crafts Association.
Jones was knighted in the 2010 New Year Honours for services to the arts.[5]
| Cultural offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Alan Borg |
Director of the Victoria and Albert Museum 2001 – 2011 |
Succeeded by Martin Roth |
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