Nick Martinez ’11 Helps Curate Long Island’s Newest Video Game Exhibit

As a premed freshman with a penchant for video games, Nick Martinez '11 never imagined he'd help curate his first exhibition on gaming at the Long Island Museum in Stony Brook - just steps away from his alma mater.

"I've spent my career, including my first internship, behind the scenes in museums," said Martinez. "Getting to help design this exhibit was a surreal experience that brought me full circle from my time playing video games in my dorm room."

Using that internship as a stepping stone, Martinez built a successful career at the American Museum of Natural History (AMNH) in educational programming, community engagement and curriculum development. He currently serves as vice president of education and engagement at the Museum of the City of New York and teaches in the museum administration graduate program at St. John's University. When a former colleague reached out about co-curating a gaming exhibition, Martinez jumped at the opportunity.

In a Q&A in SB Matters, Martinez talks about how Stony Brook University shaped his career in museum education and what it was like to curate his first exhibit.