Update:  The Museum of Contemporary Art has a new director now, but the
curatorial staff has greatly diminished.





At 12:47 PM 6/19/1998 -0500, Patricia L. Miller wrote:
>It was in the Chicago Tribune, May 27, 1998, Section Two. "Take Me to Your
>Leader?" The museums listed were: Chicago's Museum of Contemporary Art
>(needs director, three curators). Others needing directors:
>
>Addison Gallery of American Art at Phillips Academy, Andover, Mass.
>Allen Memorial Art Museum, Oberlin College, Oberlin, OH
>Bowdoin College Museum of Art, Brunswick, Maine
>Crocker Art Museum, Sacramento, Calif.
>Des Moines Art Center, Des Moines, Iowa
>Detroit Institute of Art, Detroit, Mich.
>Dewitt Wallace Gallery and Gardens at Colonial Williamsburg, Williamsburg,
VA.
>Dixon Gallery and Gardens, Memphis, Tenn.
>Hammer Museum of Art and Cultural Center at U.C.L.A, Los Angeles, Calif.
>Harn Museum at the University of Florida, Gainesville, Fla.
>Kimbell Art Museum, Fort Worth, Tex.
>Memphis Brooks Museum, Museum of Art, Memphis, Tenn.
>Museum of Art, Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
>Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles, Calif.
>New Museum of Contemporary Art, New York, N.Y.
>Rose Art Museum at Brandeis University, Boston, Mass.
>Rhode Island School of Design Museum, Providence, R.I.
>St. Louis Art Museum, St. Louis, Mo.
>San Antonio Art Museum, San Antonio, Tex.
>University of Michigan Museum of Art, Ann Arbor, Mich.
>Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, N.Y.
>
>
>It's quite an interesting article. Statements about fund-raising skills and
>the business aspects of museum operation could apply to other types of
>museums. One quote from Richard Koshalek, who is retiring from the Museum of
>Contemporary Art in Los Angeles, goes a bit against the flow, "Cultural
>institutions are different from corporations, they have different goals. Any
>institution saying it needs a MBA is making a serious mistake in terms of
>credibility and integrity. What is needed is creative leadership, an
>understanding of art and education and, after that, yes, management skills."
>
>Pat Miller
>
>
>
>At 12:23 PM 6/19/98 -0400, you wrote:
>>Dear Robert,
>>
>>OK, but I will have to do it on Monday.  The article is at home and I will
>>have to find it among all my papers!
>>I know that one of them was Williamsburg.
>>
>>Elizabeth
>>
>>
>>
>>On Fri, 19 Jun 1998, Robert T. Handy wrote:
>>
>>> Hey!  Post a list of those ten to fifteen museums without Directors.  I
>might want to send some of them a resume.
>>>
>>>
>>> ------
>>> Robert Handy
>>> Brazoria County Historical Museum
>>> museum_bob
>>> [log in to unmask]
>>> http://www.bchm.org
>>>
>>> ----------
>>> From:   Elizabeth Anne Hanson[SMTP:[log in to unmask]]
>>> Sent:   Friday, June 19, 1998 9:38 AM
>>> To:     [log in to unmask]
>>> Subject:        Re: seeking: ENTRY-LEVEL JOB
>>>
>>> Dear Julia,
>>>
>>> I find this extremely interesting too.  There was recently an article in
>>> the Chicago Tribune discussing this exact same issue.  At this point I
>>> cannot recall the date, but could find out if you would like to read it.
>>> Anyway this article talked about the fact that many museum directors
>>> around
>>> the country are quiting there jobs and listed about 10 or 15 top museums
>>> without directors.  Excessive hours and too much work were listed as some
>>> of the reasons many directors are quiting.
>>>
>>> Elizabeth
>>>
>>> On Thu, 18 Jun 1998, J./B. Moore wrote:
>>>
>>> > Does anybody else besides me find it ironic that the entry-level jobs
>>> > are so competitive when at any one time these days there are about 100
>>> > museum directorships vacant and looking for applicants?  Guess when
>>> > people do fight their way in and up to the top they find it's not as
>>> > great as it seemed, and hop from job to job finding the "ideal" one.
>>> >
>>> > Maybe instead of grousing about how hard it is to find an entry-level
>>> > job, we should focus on keeping the good people we have and grooming
>>> > them for the top spots--and making the top spots worth holding.  Maybe
>>> > only then can the museum field move forward.
>>> >
>>> >
>>> > Julia Moore
>>> > Director of Exhibitions and Artist Services
>>> > Indianapolis Art Center
>>> >
>>>
>>
>>
>Patricia L. Miller, Executive Director
>Illinois Heritage Association
>602 1/2 E. Green St.
>Champaign, IL 61820
>(217)359-5600; fax (217) 344-6171; email [log in to unmask]
>
>
Julie Collins
Curator of Education
Mary and Leigh Block Museum of Art
Northwestern University
1967 South Campus Drive
Evanston, Il 60208
Tel. (847)491-4852
Fax  (847)467-4609
[log in to unmask]
http://www.nwu.edu/museum/