LEWISTON — Nationally esteemed as a curator and arts administrator, Dan Mills is the new director of the Bates College Museum of Art.

Mills comes to Maine from Bucknell University, where for nine years he served as director of the Samek Art Gallery.

“Dan Mills achieved great things at the Samek Gallery,” said Bates Dean of the Faculty Jill Reich. “His exhibitions were adventurous and provocative, truly ahead of the curve. His vision will strengthen the Bates museum’s role in enriching the arts scene in southern Maine.”

Strongly committed to museum involvement in the community beyond campus, Mills is intrigued by Bates’ overall engagement with Lewiston-Auburn. “There’s a real service and outreach component that’s in Bates’ DNA, and that I find very appealing,” he said.

Mills is also an accomplished artist whose work, in a variety of media, explores themes and imagery including cartography, humor, imperialism, cartoon characters, landscape and portraiture.

Since 2009, he has had solo exhibitions at Sherry Frumkin Gallery in Santa Monica, Calif., the Tianjin Academy of Fine Arts Museum in China and at several academic institutions. The Perceval Press, actor Viggo Mortensen’s publishing company, produced a hardcover book based on his “US Future State Atlas” series of drawings in 2009.

Mills succeeds Mark Bessire, who now heads the Portland Museum of Art.