Chairman’s Letter, October 2015
Updated Jul 20, 2022
Chairman’s Letter, October 2015
For the past nine months, I have had the pleasure of leading a skilled and very committed group of DIA volunteers working with our consultants, the Phillips Oppenheim firm in New York City, to identify and hire Graham Beal's successor as our next DIA director. Acting upon a recommendation of our search committee, both the DIA Executive Committee and full Board of Directors unanimously named Salvador Salort-Pons as director, president, and chief executive officer of the DIA. Salvador will assume his new role and responsibilities on October 15, 2015, and I know you will join me in extending our warmest DIA welcome to him, his wife, Alex, and their family.
While our search attracted both national and international candidates, we were very fortunate to have someone of Salvador's high caliber and respected reputation right in our midst. Salvador has served as director of the museum's European art department since 2011, adding the role of executive director of collection strategies and information in 2013. He also serves as the Elizabeth and Allan Shelden Curator of European Paintings at the DIA and has played a key role in the museum's strategic planning process. His extensive knowledge of the DIA, his international experience, and his management skills make him the ideal choice to lead the DIA in the coming years.
Two of our leading priorities at the DIA are expanding our museum's tri-county and statewide outreach and increasing our endowment. Salvador has the skills and experience to lead in both of these key areas. His extensive and intimate knowledge of the DIA's collection, his interpersonal skills, and his relationship with the museum's current and prospective donor base and other advocates will enable Salvador to have an immediate impact on the DIA.
We owe our thanks and appreciation to our search committee members: Dick Gabrys and Reggie Turner (both search committee vice chairs), Ken Eisenberg, Blake Ellis, Jennifer Fischer, Mary Ann Gorlin, Chacona Johnson, John Lewis, Reuben Munday, Dennis Scholl, Marc Schwartz, Tom Sidlik, and Alan Schwartz.
As the saying goes, timing is everything. With the Detroit bankruptcy successfully concluded and the DIA now an independent institution owning its art collection and museum building, the search environment was significantly enhanced by the exciting stories circulating about Detroit and the well-deserved worldwide acclaim about the survival and future of our DIA.
As we begin the fall season with a full menu of DIA events, we do so with the exciting expectation of even greater accomplishments in our future. We have all been looking forward to the opening of our Ancient Middle East Gallery this month--a 2,855 square foot first-floor gallery that includes remarkable art from the ancient empires of Assyria, Babylonia, Persia, and the Arabian Kingdom in modern day Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Syria, Turkey, and Yemen.
Our next special exhibition, 30 Americans, featuring African American art from the outstanding Rubell Family Collection in Miami, opens October 18 for twelve weeks, featuring the work of many of the most important African American artists who rose to prominence during recent decades.
In the coming weeks and months please make it a priority to enjoy your DIA to the fullest.
Chairman’s Letter, October 2015
For the past nine months, I have had the pleasure of leading a skilled and very committed group of DIA volunteers working with our consultants, the Phillips Oppenheim firm in New York City, to identify and hire Graham Beal's successor as our next DIA director. Acting upon a recommendation of our search committee, both the DIA Executive Committee and full Board of Directors unanimously named Salvador Salort-Pons as director, president, and chief executive officer of the DIA. Salvador will assume his new role and responsibilities on October 15, 2015, and I know you will join me in extending our warmest DIA welcome to him, his wife, Alex, and their family.
While our search attracted both national and international candidates, we were very fortunate to have someone of Salvador's high caliber and respected reputation right in our midst. Salvador has served as director of the museum's European art department since 2011, adding the role of executive director of collection strategies and information in 2013. He also serves as the Elizabeth and Allan Shelden Curator of European Paintings at the DIA and has played a key role in the museum's strategic planning process. His extensive knowledge of the DIA, his international experience, and his management skills make him the ideal choice to lead the DIA in the coming years.
Two of our leading priorities at the DIA are expanding our museum's tri-county and statewide outreach and increasing our endowment. Salvador has the skills and experience to lead in both of these key areas. His extensive and intimate knowledge of the DIA's collection, his interpersonal skills, and his relationship with the museum's current and prospective donor base and other advocates will enable Salvador to have an immediate impact on the DIA.
We owe our thanks and appreciation to our search committee members: Dick Gabrys and Reggie Turner (both search committee vice chairs), Ken Eisenberg, Blake Ellis, Jennifer Fischer, Mary Ann Gorlin, Chacona Johnson, John Lewis, Reuben Munday, Dennis Scholl, Marc Schwartz, Tom Sidlik, and Alan Schwartz.
As the saying goes, timing is everything. With the Detroit bankruptcy successfully concluded and the DIA now an independent institution owning its art collection and museum building, the search environment was significantly enhanced by the exciting stories circulating about Detroit and the well-deserved worldwide acclaim about the survival and future of our DIA.
As we begin the fall season with a full menu of DIA events, we do so with the exciting expectation of even greater accomplishments in our future. We have all been looking forward to the opening of our Ancient Middle East Gallery this month--a 2,855 square foot first-floor gallery that includes remarkable art from the ancient empires of Assyria, Babylonia, Persia, and the Arabian Kingdom in modern day Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Syria, Turkey, and Yemen.
Our next special exhibition, 30 Americans, featuring African American art from the outstanding Rubell Family Collection in Miami, opens October 18 for twelve weeks, featuring the work of many of the most important African American artists who rose to prominence during recent decades.
In the coming weeks and months please make it a priority to enjoy your DIA to the fullest.
