has appointed Carlos Basualdo as its next director.
Basualdo, 60, comes to Dallas from the Philadelphia Museum of Art, where he rose through the ranks over 20 years to deputy director and chief curator. He succeeds the Nasher鈥檚 longtime director who retired last June. Basualdo takes over the post on May 12.
He first visited the Nasher in October, when he also walked around the Arts District to observe how the museum fit into the neighborhood.
Basualdo, a native Argentinian, described the Nasher, , as connected to 鈥渢he life of the city鈥� in a Thursday interview. Moving through the space, he said, is 鈥渒ind of uplifting and almost like a respite. The garden is so beautiful.鈥�
Opened in 2003, and founded by developer and art aficionado , the sculpture center houses over 500 artworks from Nasher and his wife Patsy鈥檚 collection, including pieces by Jean-Michel Basquiat, Simone Leigh and Constantin Br芒ncu葯i, according to a news release from the museum.
While at the Philadelphia Museum of Art, Basualdo curated landmark exhibitions including Bruce Nauman鈥檚 鈥淭opological Gardens,鈥� which showed at the 2009 Venice Biennale, and Barbara Chase-Riboud鈥檚 鈥淭he Malcolm X Steles,鈥� featuring bronze and textile sculptures honoring the civil rights activist, according to the news release.
David Haemisegger, Nasher鈥檚 son-in-law and chair of the museum鈥檚 board of trustees, said in a statement that Basualdo鈥檚 鈥渄istinguished career and curatorial achievements align perfectly with our mission to champion the field of sculpture 鈥� we are excited for what lies ahead under his leadership and how he will build on the Nasher鈥檚 enduring legacy.鈥�
Basualdo said he sees his new role as being a 鈥渓istener鈥� both internally with staffers and externally with the community.
In his view, the relationship between an arts organization and its locale should be reciprocal.
Visitors should feel represented by and proud of an institution, Basualdo said. In turn, the museum should make them 鈥渇eel at home.鈥�
Basualdo is inheriting a museum that has grown into a formidable local and national presence.
During Strick鈥檚 15-year leadership, the center launched the Nasher Prize, which awards $100,000 to 鈥渁 living artist whose body of work has had an extraordinary impact on our understanding of sculpture,鈥� according to the museum鈥檚 website. There have been eight laureates, with the prize now awarded biennially.
The center has also developed partnerships that bring art into public spaces across the city.
The Nasher made headlines in the early 2010s over a dispute with Museum Tower, a nearby high-rise that cast reflections and onto the Nasher galleries.
It鈥檚 been over a decade since the height of the controversy, but no solution appears to be yet.
Basualdo is aware of the issue. 鈥淚 will try to understand better the situation once I鈥檓 there,鈥� he said.
Arts Access is an arts journalism collaboration powered by The Dallas Morning News and 四虎影院.
This community-funded journalism initiative is funded by the Better Together Fund, Carol & Don Glendenning, City of Dallas OAC, The University of Texas at Dallas, Communities Foundation of Texas, The Dallas Foundation, Eugene McDermott Foundation, James & Gayle Halperin Foundation, Jennifer & Peter Altabef and The Meadows Foundation. The News and 四虎影院 retain full editorial control of Arts Access鈥� journalism.
Arts Access is an arts journalism collaboration powered by The Dallas Morning News and 四虎影院.
This community-funded journalism initiative is funded by the Better Together Fund, Carol & Don Glendenning, City of Dallas OAC, The University of Texas at Dallas, Communities Foundation of Texas, The Dallas Foundation, Eugene McDermott Foundation, James & Gayle Halperin Foundation, Jennifer & Peter Altabef and The Meadows Foundation. The News and 四虎影院 retain full editorial control of Arts Access鈥� journalism.
