Miami Beach

Director Search

Bass Museum hopes to have a new executive director by August

By Ben Torter

Nine months after the Bass Museum of Art’s longtime Executive Director Diane Camber quit, a search committee is officially seeking her replacement.

The committee — Joyce Kaiser, Judy Drucker, Robert Wennett, Dennis Scholl, Dennis Richard, Walid Sfeir, Mary Kramer, Richard Shack, George Lindemann and Helen Kohen — met for the first time last week to discuss expectations for a new director, the hiring process and a timeline.

Scholl, a major collector who was recently involved in two museum director searches, is the committee chair. Richard, a Bass trustee and attorney who represents the museum’s collection for the Bass family, is the vice chair.

The plan is to fill the position by the end of August. But finding someone to helm a museum still reeling from an internal power struggle caused partially by Camber’s exit after 25 years will likely require a bit of luck and good fortune.

“Without question, we’re looking for someone who walks on water,” said Linda Sweet of Management Consultants for the Arts, Inc., the firm hired to select the candidate pool from which the search committee will make a recommendation.

The museum (with a full-time staff of 12 and an approximate budget of $2.5 million) has been run since July by Gary Farmer, whose main job is cultural affairs program manager for the city. Farmer has kept the museum on track through turbulent times that climaxed last fall when Princess Thi-Nga tried to have him fired. After that failed coup attempt, the Princess abruptly resigned from her roles as chair of the Bass Board of Trustees, and from Friends of the Bass. Thi-Nga’s jade collection, which was exhibited at the Bass from February to April of 2007, was the subject of an American Association of Museums investigation that threatened the museum’s accreditation.

As a result of the controversy, the museum’s books and meeting are open to the public, a policy Camber didn’t always follow. The committee discussed the possibility that the transparency rules and city influence over the museum could be viewed as a drawback by potential candidates.

“The city’s role in the operation of the museum is really quite limited,” Richard said, adding the city doesn’t hire or fire the director. “The city’s primary role has been funding.”

Richard explained that because funding for specific shows falls largely to the Friends of the Bass Museum, the new director shouldn’t fear city influence.

Some of the likely challenges facing the next executive director include developing a new governance structure, guiding the vision of the three collecting areas (old masters, contemporary art, and modern and contemporary architecture and design) and coming up with three-to-five-year strategic and business plans. A salary range has not yet been determined, though Camber earned a $134,063 annually at the time of her resignation.

Fundraising and overseeing plans for a planned new wing are also in the job description. The original section of the museum building is the former Miami Beach Public Library and Art Center designed by Russell Pancoast. An expansion of the building was completed in 2002, which more than doubled its size from 15,000 to 35,000 square feet. A planned second phase will add another 33,000 square feet.

The position will be advertised on the American Association of Museums’ Web site, as well as through museum directors and other arts organizations. Sweet will be promoting the post in person at the AAM’s Annual Meeting and Museum Expo in Denver, Colo., April 27 through May 1.

“This process will take up to eight weeks,” said Sweet, who explained she should be ready to discuss candidates with the search committee by late May. She hopes to begin interviews in June and be done by late August. “It may be that it could go a little faster, it may be that it could take a little longer, but that’s the timeline we’re working with.”

Comments? E-mail ben@miamisunpost.com