Experienced art curator Dr Nicholas Cullinan has been appointed as the new director of the National Portrait Gallery in London, having first worked there as a visitor services assistant 14 years ago.

Cullinan, 37, is the current curator of Modern and Contemporary Art at New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art and will take up his new post in Q2 2015. He becomes the Gallery’s 12th director, replacing the outgoing Sandy Nairne who announced last year he would step down after 12 years at the helm to pursue writing and advisory work.

Having previously worked as curator of International Modern Art at Tate Modern from 2007-2013, Yorkshireman Cullinan has turned heads in New York through developing several high-profile projects. At the Met, he organised the exhibitions Venetian Glass by Carlo Scarpa: The Venini Company, 1932-47 (2013) as well as Amie Siegel: Provenance (2014). He has been responsible for a number of major works being acquired by the Met.

“It will be an honour to lead the Gallery at a particularly exciting time in its development, to build upon its remarkable success and accomplishments and to work with its world-class team in shaping the future direction,” said Cullinan, who first worked at Gallery while studying at London’s Courtauld Institute of Art.

“At a time when identity, shared culture and civic values are increasingly relevant to us all, the National Portrait Gallery is uniquely placed to generate a discussion by reflecting on our common artistic, cultural and social history – in short, on what binds us together.”