Ian McKibbin White was the director of the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco from its formation in 1970 until his retirement in 1987. Born in Hawaii in 1929 and raised in Sonoma County, White attended Harvard and UCLA. He worked for the Brooklyn Botanical Garden and the Brooklyn Museum before accepting a position as director with the California Palace of the Legion of Honor in 1968. He became director of the de Young Museum in 1970 when the two museums merged to form the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco. White is also a recognized painter of landscapes, many of which are included in his book, The Creative Impulse: Art of Ian McKibbin White (2018). In this oral history, White discusses his years as museum director with particular attention to: building and maintaining the permanent collection; recruiting and working alongside professional staff; fundraising and donor relations; planning for and hosting major exhibitions; and the role of the museum in the local and global cultural landscapes. Ian McKibbin White is the subject of two previous oral histories conducted by the Archives of American Art in 1981 and 1987.