In a letter sent to the
Guggenheim Museum and published online, the anonymous group
A Better Guggenheim called for the removal of three top executives:
Richard Armstrong, Elizabeth Duggal, and
Nancy Spector. The letter details allegations of sexism, racism, classism, and abuse.
The
Guggenheim Museum laid off 24 employees. Another eight employees accepted voluntary separation packages.
After
Bill Arning, the former director of the
Contemporary Arts Museum Houston, was
accused of sexual harassment online, the museum confirmed that an investigation into the director’s behavior resulted in his separation from the museum in 2018.
Citing “deeply systemic issues,” faculty at the
Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA) declared a
vote of “no confidence“ in the school’s senior leadership, including the president and provost.
Awards & Accolades
Farah Al Qasimi was awarded the third annual Capricious Photo Award.
Ana María Alvarez, Andrew Cyrille, Sean Dorsey, Michael John Garcés, Rennie Harris, Cécile McLorin Salvant, Dael Orlandersmith, and Pam Tanowitz were named the 2020 Doris Duke Artists, each receiving a $275,000 award from the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation.
Arts.Black, BOMB, Bmore Art, the Brooklyn Rail, Burnaway, Glasstire, the Maine Arts Journal, the New Art Examiner, and X-TRA were awarded $20,000 each by the Dorothea and Leo Rabkin Foundation.
Tracy Fitzpatrick, Director of the Neuberger Museum of Art, was appointed to the New York State Board of Regents Advisory Council on Museums.
Jova Lynne rejoined the Museum of Contemporary Art Detroit (MOCAD) as the Susanne Feld Hilberry Senior Curator.
Transitions
Brent R. Benjamin will retire as director of the Saint Louis Art Museum.
Nikki Iacovella was appointed director of the Outsider Art Fair.
Sara Jimenez and Destinie Adelakun were awarded the 2020 Canadian Women Artists’ Award by the New York Fondation for the Arts.
Kyla McMillan was appointed director, focusing on sales and artist management, at
David Zwirner Gallery. | via
ARTnews Obituaries
Steve Carter (1929–2020), playwright who began his career at the Negro Ensemble Company |
Playbill Vasilis Dimitriou (1936–2020), artist who painted original movie posters |
artnet Nancy Dine (1937–2020), Academy Award-nominated filmmaker |
artnet Ann Getty (1941–2020), publisher and arts patron |
NYT Florence Howe (1929–2020), publisher and historian who cofounded the Feminist Press |
Baltimore Sun Randall Kenan (1963–2020), award-winning fiction writer |
NYT Jiří Menzel (1938–2020), award-winning director |
Guardian William Pursell (1926–2020), Grammy-nominated country musician |
NYT Bruce Williamson Jr. (1970–2020), soul singer and former member of the Temptations |
AV Press