Art Market Monitor

Global Coverage ~ Unique Analysis

  • AMMpro
  • AMM Fantasy Collecting Game
  • Podcast
  • Contact Us

The Soap Opera at Canada's National Gallery

January 3, 2009 by Marion Maneker

David FranklinOver the holiday, the New York Times ran a story covering the high drama at Canada’s National Gallery as the Deputy Director jockeyed for position to succeed his boss:

Now as Pierre Théberge prepares to end his 11-year tenure as the director of the National Gallery, Canada’s wealthiest art institution, the museum is immersed in a controversy that has more in common with television comedies like “The Office” than debates about expenditures on paintings.

The chain of events has included the dismissal of David Franklin, the gallery’s deputy director and curator; the filing of a lawsuit by Dr. Franklin and his subsequent rehiring; the release of a series of unusually vitriolic internal e-mail messages; court filings that discuss the gallery’s “toxic” working atmosphere; and finally the appointment of a new director who takes over next month.

Throughout the conflict Mr. Théberge, 66, who was once mainly seen by the public as an eccentric who brought his terriers to work, has faced allegations from Dr. Franklin, 47, that he is “medically unfit” for his job.

“This has been a disgrace,” said René Blouin, a leading art dealer in Montreal, adding, “It’s very damaging for museums of that caliber when there is not pride at the top.”

National Gallery of Canada Looks Beyond Controversy and Court (The New York Times)

More from Art Market Monitor

  • Christie's Scottish SaleChristie's Scottish Sale
  • Hong Kong Art Fair Shows Pulse in Art MarketHong Kong Art Fair Shows Pulse in Art Market
  • If Andy Had Been an ArabIf Andy Had Been an Arab
  • Timothy Sammons Faces More Lawsuits, Court Freezes His AssetsTimothy Sammons Faces More Lawsuits, Court Freezes His Assets
  • Sotheby’s HK Cont Asia = $211m ($27.3m)Sotheby’s HK Cont Asia = $211m ($27.3m)
  • Global CreativityGlobal Creativity

Filed Under: Museums

About Marion Maneker

Want to get Art Market Monitor‘s posts sent to you in our email? Sign up below by clicking on the Subscribe button.

Top Posts

  • Keith Haring’s 1989 Retrospect Comes to Sotheby’s London Prints Sale
  • Tony Podesta's Secret Art Buying
  • Four of Picasso's Women Valued at $28m Come to Christie's from Rose-Walters Collection
  • Norman Rockwell's Not Gay. But Is He a Great Artist?
  • $10 M. Picasso Portrait Unseen for Decades to Sell at Bonhams
  • Sotheby's Pulls in a $9m David Hockney for November
  • Lost Lempicka Discovered at Sotheby's
  • David Bowie Talks About Art (with Julian Schnabel)
  • Re-discovered John Constable Painting at Sotheby's in December
  • Vienna Secession Painting, Long Thought to Be Lost, Sets a Record at Auction
  • About Us/ Contact
  • Podcast
  • AMMpro
  • Newsletter
  • FAQ

twitterfacebooksoundcloud
Privacy Policy
Terms & Conditions
California Privacy Rights
Do Not Sell My Personal Information
Advertise on Art Market Monitor