Steven Ames, a private investor in New York and a longtime supporter of Cornell University's art scene, has been named chair of Cornell's Herbert F. Johnson Museum of Art Advisory Council.

The appointment was made by Cornell President Hunter Rawlings. Ames succeeds Richard Schwartz, who resigned to serve as vice chair of the New York State Council on the Arts.

Ames, a 1963 Cornell graduate, formerly served as vice chair of the Johnson Museum's advisory council and chairman of the council's program committee.

"I am deeply grateful to Steve Ames for agreeing to be chairman of the Museum Advisory Council," said Franklin Robinson, the museum's Richard J. Schwartz Director. "His kindness and sensitivity to the people he works with, his profound love of art and his openness to contemporary and new media have already endeared him to members of the council and to the Johnson staff."

Robinson also acknowledged the leadership of the former chair: "Richard Schwartz's leadership has transformed the museum in many ways, from our governance to our outreach to collectors throughout the Cornell community. He has strengthened the museum's national stature. This director and museum were fortunate to have his leadership. The museum wishes him well with his new appointment."

Ames has been a major contributor to Cornell. He has endowed the position of the Ames Curator of Education, the museum's key education officer, and has supported the Center for Theatre Arts through the Ames Film Production Suite.

The museum's advisory council advises the director on policies for the management of the museum's collections and helps foster relationships between the museum and its various constituencies.