Tracey Bates is the Chief Executive Officer of the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art. She oversees the museum’s institutional operations, shaping strategic vision, revenue growth, visitor experience, and development to establish the museum as a vital cultural resource for Los Angeles and beyond. She is charged with leading the Lucas Museum into its inaugural year, transforming a years-long vision into a thriving, publicly accessible institution.
Prior to becoming CEO, Bates has advised founders George Lucas and Mellody Hobson on the museum's development. Since 2020, she has helped to shape the museum’s strategic foundation, develop programming, and establish revenue and engagement initiatives. Artistic content of the Lucas Museum is directed by George Lucas.
"As a trusted advisor to us for years, Tracey Bates has been integral in shaping the foundation of the Lucas Museum,” said Lucas Museum co-founder Mellody Hobson. “With her breadth of experience with arts organizations around the world, Tracey is an invaluable partner and the right strategic visionary to advance the Lucas Museum's mission and help build it into a world-class institution.”
Bates spent more than a decade as founder of T&B Consulting, advising leading cultural institutions through transformational periods, including commercial operations for the recent opening of the new home of the Studio Museum in Harlem, the Royal Ballet & Opera’s Open Up Project, and The High Line’s recent retail development. Additional clients include MoMA, The National Gallery, London Museum, Royal Collection Trust, Tate Modern, and the Summer Olympic Games in London and Paris.
Bates believes that arts organizations have the greatest impact when they are both ambitious and accessible. That philosophy guides her leadership of the Lucas Museum, as she works to amplify the museum’s mission to advance the power of storytelling to connect people across generations and communities.