The shortlist of potential replacements for Jeffrey Deitch is very short indeed, if this LA Times story is right. Former Hirshhorn director Richard Koshalek comes to John Baldessari’s mind and Joel Wachs is said to have a close tie to Ann Goldstein, a former curator now at the Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam.
Finding names may be less of an issue than creating an environment where the new director can thrive. Some former board members blame the ever-present Eli Broad:
“Whoever they get to replace Jeffrey Deitch will need to have an absolute guarantee of complete curatorial freedom to do the shows they want, when they want,” says former Museum of Contemporary Art board member and art collector Dean Valentine, who currently serves on an advisory board of Los Angeles’ Hammer Museum.
“Until Eli Broad comes to a recognition that he needs to stay away from the museum in anything other than a financial capacity,” he says, “and until the board begins to behave responsibly and financially support the director, then a new director won’t have the tools to revive this amazing institution.”
Others suggest the problem remains with a still dysfunctional board that has yet to set its house in order. The museum runs with a skeletal staff and a budget that is substantially smaller than it was decades ago.
A Post-Deitch MoCA Presents Challenge for Next Director (Los Angeles Times)
