Mario Amaya (October 6, 1933 – June 29, 1986) was an American art critic, museum director and magazine editor, and a one-time director of the New York Cultural Center (1972–1976) and the Chrysler Museum of Art in Norfolk, Virginia (1976–1979).
He was also the chief curator of the Art Gallery of Ontario (1969–1972) and the founding editor of London's Art and Artists magazine.
He studied Art Nouveau for 35 years, some of this under the teaching of artist Mark Rothko.