Wednesday, September 16, 2009
Indy Museum News Updates
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From the IMA Press Release:
J. Nicholas Cameron has been appointed Chief Operating Officer of the IMA. Cameron has worked at The Metropolitan Museum of Art for more than 30 years, most recently as Vice President for Construction. He will start his new position in Indianapolis on January 4, 2010. In his role at the IMA, Cameron will lead construction and renovation efforts at the main Museum building, including the construction of the new Conservation Science Laboratory; efforts to enhance art storage areas and ongoing gallery renovations. Cameron also will lead efforts to build the Museum’s portfolio of earned income potential with retail sales and event rental.
“We are very fortunate to have found such a skilled museum professional with a keen eye for detail and a proven record of fiscal responsibility. Nick’s vast experience will be an asset to our institution and will add depth to the IMA’s senior management team,” said Maxwell L. Anderson, The Melvin & Bren Simon Director and CEO of the IMA.
At The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Cameron successfully completed more than $850 million in construction projects over a 22-year period. He has played a key role with the departments of security, special events, visitor services, exhibition design and building maintenance, among others. He holds an MBA from the University of Connecticut and a bachelor’s degree from Vanderbilt University.
“I am excited to join the staff of the Indianapolis Museum of Art. Part of what attracted me to this position was IMA’s outstanding reputation for collection management and technology. I look forward to contributing to these areas and to working on other advancements in the field,” said Cameron.
The duties of Chief Operating Officer were previously filled by the consulting services of Edward George & Associates, LLC (EGA). EGA was retained by the IMA at the beginning of 2006 to improve daily building operations including energy use. Since the beginning of 2006, Jack Leicht, EGA President, and his team have helped the IMA to achieve remarkable improvement in the consistency of the IMA’s internal environment while at the same time dramatically reducing electricity and natural gas usage and other related expenses. Because of their efforts, the IMA will save millions of dollars over the next decade through reduced energy consumption. Through the efforts of EGA, the IMA became the first fine art museum to be recognized by the government, achieving ENERGY STAR certification, for its efforts to become more environmentally responsible.
From the Press Release:
Nearly three quarters of a million dollars in grants awarded and one of the world’s finest collections of Native contemporary art have earned the Eiteljorg Museum of American Indians and Western Art recognition as a leader in contemporary art.
Today, the Eiteljorg Fellowship for Native American Fine Art cemented that status as it announces the five artists who will join a cadre of 30 previous Fellows as indigenous contemporary artists whose works are infiltrating the mainstream art world.
In its sixth biennium, the Eiteljorg Fellowship program is giving four unrestricted grants of $25,000 each to juried Native artists working in the field of contemporary art, as well as one $25,000 grant to an invited artist based on his influential contributions made over a lifetime.
The 2009 Eiteljorg Fellows (and their tribal affiliations) are:
Invited Artist: Edward Poitras (Gordon First Nations/Métis), Treaty 4 Territory, Saskatchewan, Canada
Jim Denomie (Ojibwe), Shafer, Minn., U.S.
Jeffrey Gibson (Mississippi Band of Choctaw/Cherokee), Brooklyn, N.Y., U.S.
Faye HeavyShield (Kainai-Blood), Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada
Wendy Red Star (Crow), Portland, Ore., U.S.
New this year, the Eiteljorg Museum will launch a Web site, www.fellowship.eiteljorg.org, to provide online access to thousands of works by Native artists and to serve as a digital forum for the exchange of ideas.
“The Fellowship is intended to elevate the visibility of Native contemporary art and encourage the voices of Native and First Nations artists in the field,” said Jennifer Complo McNutt, curator of contemporary art and the Fellowship director since its inception ten years ago.
“The new microsite provides a forum for artists, scholars, students, collectors, enthusiasts and anyone who’s curious about Native contemporary art to learn, interact and communicate,” added Complo McNutt.
From Nov. 13, 2009, through Feb. 12, 2010, the Eiteljorg Museum of American Indians and Western Art in Indianapolis will showcase the works from this year’s class of Fellows in a special exhibition. In conjunction with the exhibition, the museum will publish a catalogue with images, scholarly articles and essays. A gala dinner and public programs will bring the artists to Indianapolis and allow the public to experience contemporary fine art.
The museum also will purchase more than $100,000 in art for its permanent collection from the Fellowship artists.
Since its inception in 1999, the Eiteljorg Fellowship for Native American Fine Art has awarded more than $725,000 in unrestricted grants and added more than 125 pieces of art by 30 Native artists to the Eiteljorg Museum’s permanent collection. As a result, the Eiteljorg is acknowledged to have the finest collection of Native contemporary art in the world.
The Eiteljorg Museum of American Indians and Western Art seeks to inspire an appreciation and understanding of the art, history and cultures of the American West and the indigenous peoples of North America. The museum, which opened in 1989, is located in Downtown Indianapolis’ White River State Park. For general information about the museum and to learn more about exhibits and events, call
(317) 636-WEST (9378) or visit www.eiteljorg.org.
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