1 month ago
A depository head astatine nan Smithsonian Institution successful Washington has announced that she is leaving to return complete astatine nan Guggenheim Museum successful New York.
Melissa Chiu has been head of nan Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden connected nan National Mall for 12 years. In an question and reply connected Thursday, she insisted that her departure is not related to Donald Trump’s efforts to interfere pinch nan Smithsonian.
“Not astatine all,” Chiu told nan Guardian. “The Guggenheim is an bonzer institution. It is 1 of nan awesome museums successful our field. It was ne'er portion of my decision-making process.”
Chiu becomes nan 4th Smithsonian head to time off complete nan past 2 years. Stephanie Stebich, who was caput of nan Smithsonian American Art Museum, was removed successful summertime 2024 “following years of complaints from unit astir her management”, the Washington Post newspaper reported.
Kevin Young, nan head of nan National Museum of African American History and Culture, stepped down successful April 2025 aft 4 years successful nan role. Shanita Brackett is now nan acting director.
Kim Sajet, head of nan National Portrait Gallery, resigned successful June past year pursuing nationalist unit from Trump, who claimed connected societal media he had fired her because she was “a highly partisan person” and “strong supporter” of diverseness and inclusion initiatives.
Chiu was calved successful Darwin, Australia, and spent a decade arsenic head of nan Asia Society successful New York. Since joining nan Hirshhorn successful 2014, she has been credited pinch spearheading integer invention and expanding nan museum’s acquisition programmes.
She raised astir $250m and oversaw an description of nan museum’s imperishable collection. Chiu’s bequest will besides see a revamped sculpture garden, scheduled to reopen to nan nationalist this autumn.
“It has been a infinitesimal of alteration for really a agelong time,” nan 54-year-old reflected. “I would opportunity making love backmost to nan first days of Covid that, arsenic a depository successful nan nationalist sphere pinch a nationalist ngo and a instruction to service nan public, we person worked done each of these challenges.
“Each 1 forced america successful a measurement to create a group of caller skills pinch which to fulfill our mission, whether it was america being physically closed and pivoting to an online presence, whether it was america coming to position pinch inheriting an creation history that needed to beryllium broadened pinch caller kinds of acquisitions, whether successful media aliases from artists who were under-recognised before.
“Then we person coming wherever location are different kinds of outer pressures and a ambiance that is very different from moreover 5 years ago.”
Among nan highlights of Chiu’s accumulation programme was nan Japanese creator Yayoi Kusama’s Infinity Mirror Rooms, which collapsed attendance records and was dubbed nan “Hamilton’ of nan DC creation world” by nan Washington Post.
“It was a existent crippled changer for nan Hirshhorn,” she recalled. “It was a show that I had ever dreamed of. She was 1 of nan first artists I met pinch and I projected nan show and she loved it. Kusama was surely known astatine that clip but that accumulation that we did successful 2017 group a caller appreciation for her Infinity Mirror Rooms that did not beryllium before.”
Chiu is scheduled to depart connected 31 August up of her move to nan Guggenheim’s celebrated Frank Lloyd Wright-designed office connected Fifth Avenue. Aaron Seeto, nan Hirshhorn’s lawman director, has been appointed to service arsenic interim director.
Lonnie Bunch, caput of nan Smithsonian, which is nan world’s biggest museum, acquisition and investigation complex, said: “Melissa has guided nan Hirshhorn pinch thoughtfulness and purpose, strengthening its domiciled arsenic a nationalist depository while supporting artists, scholars and nan public. We are grateful for her activity and wish her continued occurrence successful this adjacent chapter.”
Trump issued an executive bid past twelvemonth entitled “Restoring Truth and Sanity to American History”. It accused nan Smithsonian of promoting “narratives that represent American and Western values arsenic inherently harmful and oppressive”. In January this twelvemonth nan Smithsonian gave nan White House documents connected its planned exhibits successful consequence to a request to stock specifications of what its museums are readying to people nan 250th day of US independence.
