Chris Dercon appointed as new director of Tate Modern
Munich's Haus der Kunst chief, 52, aims to create 'a new kind of art institution' when he takes over in spring 2011

Mixing it up ... Chris Dercon, new director of Tate Modern as of spring 2011. Photograph: Marion Vogel/Tate/PA
Tate Modern has a new director to steer it along the tricky path of international popularity and contemporary relevance. The appointment of Chris Dercon, from Munich's Haus der Kunst, was confirmed today, and the 52-year-old promises to bring his enthusiasm for "mixing it up" to the banks of the Thames when he takes over in spring 2011.

As director of the Munich gallery since 2003, he brought in an arts programme that featured architecture, fashion, design and film, and set up major exhibitions on Gerhard Richter and Anish Kapoor. He also curated the exhibition Amrita Sher-Gil: An Indian Artist Family of the 20th Century, which was at Tate Modern in 2006. More recently, Dercon has worked with architects Rem Koolhaas and Herzog & de Meuron on the renovation of the Haus der Kunst itself. Useful experience for the expanding Tate site.

From 1996 to 2003, Dercon was director of the Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen in Rotterdam, which he renovated and expanded too. While there, he was asked how he ranked contemporary artists. "Only a real misanthrope would dare to state that this or that artist is overrated," he said. "I guess I can say that one artist is more important than another one. But, even so, it is more appropriate to judge individual works of art." A diplomat, then.

Nicholas Serota, director of the Tate, welcomed the signing. "Chris Dercon has made some outstanding exhibitions in Munich and has demonstrated a commitment to showing art from across the world. We are delighted that he has agreed to lead the team that is taking Tate Modern into its second decade."

Dercon himself said: "Transforming Tate Modern is an incredibly inspiring challenge, allowing us the chance to create a new kind of art institution, fit for the 21st century and London's many different audiences. Thanks to its exceptional staff, Tate Modern is constantly evolving, almost like an art movement in itself. Indeed, it is many things for many people and I am thrilled that I will be part of it."