That’s about as much as we know from Dottie Ashley’s solid report this morning in the Post and Courier about the sudden and unexpected resignation of Todd Smith after a mere two years as executive director of the Gibbes Museum of Art. First the news.
Ashley writes:
“Some see Smith’s departure as the result of a disagreement between the concept of bringing in more contemporary work, as opposed to concentrating on the unique quality of the Gibbes, a treasure trove of history.”
Ashley does us the great service of providing context. Evidently, Smith is the second executive director in six years to come and go. Elizabeth Fleming left in 2005 after just three years as the Gibbes’ top decision-maker.
Ashley does something else that’s very useful. She includes observations from people who spend their time observing the art scene. They say:
“Arts connoisseurs have noted that the Gibbes has faced increasing competition with more art galleries in town and an aggressive director at the all-contemporary Halsey Institute for Contemporary Art at the College of Charleston.”
OK, now some analysis.
First, we are starting to see a pattern of high turnaround at the top. Not good for the Gibbes. Donors, especially big-money donors, don’t want to put their names on a house of cards. With Smith’s departure, we’ll probably see other people leave too, particularly those brought in by Smith to achieve a vision for the museum that he was slowly building a consensus for, but of course could not realize because it’s only been two years.
The Gibbes is at a crossroads. It has to decide if it wants to be a small, history-focused institution or a forward-thinking institution. In other words, it needs to decide if it’s a conservator of the past or a participant in the present. Tom White, board president, and the outspoken Eric Friberg, VP of the board, told Ashley that the Gibbes would go back to business-as-usual. In other words, focus on its core collection of historical artifacts.
I’m reminded of the ongoing struggle in urban design, development, and architecture. Should we preserve Charleston’s past or should we embrace the present and move into the future? Do we sacrifice one to attain another? Or is there a middle way?
There is a middle way, but it’s messy and loud and full of debate and sometimes bitterness. But there is a middle way, as shown by the new buildings all around Charleston. They don’t please everyone, but they are the result of intense discussion.
I don’t see this discussion happening as the Gibbes. If it were happening, Smith wouldn’t be leaving like this. It was sudden and unexpected and shocking to many, I’d guess, in that institution’s administration. And he makes two directors in six years. Not good for the Gibbes or for its public persona. The Gibbes needs to make up its mind about what it is.
I also think a middle way is best for a publicly funded museum. It would be different if it were a private museum. As it is, it should think about the future of the Gibbes as a public institution. The trend in museums nationwide is to be civic forums as much as repositories for art. They need to engage as much as preserve. If the board is happy with a constant flow of tourists, that’s fine. But if it wants to be part of the life blood of the city, something has to change.
2 Comments
Betsy Fleming left for a job as president of a college closer to her home town. Todd Smith’s unexpected resignation looks more like he was forced out for not doing either the job he was hired to do or this rebranding you seem to think he was in the process of achieving. You are almost unspeakably naive and ignorant of the situation if you think anyone in the administration was at all shocked or displeased, and if you know anything at all about the Gibbes, the staff has exited as fast as it could because of Todd Smith’s arrival and the ensuing chaos, not his departure.
Amen! to the comment, “Say What??” In my opinion, if Todd Smith did any fundraising for the Gibbes then it would be in a better state– instead he worked from home, did not go to many functions that would help bring in money, and traveled all over the world when the rest of the staff couldn’t even go to much needed educational seminars. He “eliminated positions” to save on their benefit packages and then hired part-time people to take their places. Communication became a lost art under Todd Smith. Believe me Todd Smith’s departure was the right one for the Gibbes and the art community. In addition to my comment I’ve attached a friends. –”How nice to have the analysis of a reporter who has very recently arrived in the Charleston art scene. However, it would have been nicer if he had done his homework. Perhaps he should start by talking to some ex-employees of Mr. Smith. At least six key staff members have quit or had their positions eliminated since Smith began his tenure, so it shouldn’t be hard to find one.”