Julie Perlin Lee became the executive director of Laguna Art Museum on May 3, 2021. As the executive director of the Catalina Island Museum from 2016 to 2021, Lee led a period of growth including high-profile exhibitions and educational programs, and the completion of a capital project for the museum’s new permanent facility which opened in 2016. She was curator of the exhibitions Elizabeth Turk: Tipping Point in 2019 (Turk was LAM’s commissioned artist for Art & Nature in 2018) and Peter Shire, Sculptures in 2018. She was responsible for a significant rise in individual, foundation, and legacy giving, enhanced the care and quality of the museum’s collections, and increased Catalina Island Museum’s recognition and prominence. Personally, she and her family participated in service groups and clubs throughout Avalon.

Before joining Catalina Island Museum, Lee was the vice president of collections and exhibition development at the Bowers Museum where she worked from 2008 to 2016. There she procured acquisitions for the museum’s permanent collection, directed research and preservation, organized exhibitions, and contributed to publications including A Legacy of Bounty: Paintings from the Bowers Museum and Traditions and Transitions: Tribal Art from North America. She holds a BA in Art History, MFA in Exhibition Design, and Certificate in Museum Studies from California State University, Fullerton.