KAYWIN FELDMAN APPOINTED NEW DIRECTOR OF THE MINNEAPOLIS INSTITUTE OF ARTS

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Contacts: Anne-Marie Wagener, Director of External Affairs, (612) 870-3280; Lynette Nyman, P.R. Manager, (612) 870-3173; Tammy Pleshek, P.R. Specialist, (612) 870-3171

KAYWIN FELDMAN APPOINTED NEW DIRECTOR
OF THE MINNEAPOLIS INSTITUTE OF ARTS

Minneapolis—The Board of Trustees of the Minneapolis Institute of Art (MIA) announced September 25, 2007, the appointment of Kaywin Feldman as the Director and President of the museum. Ms. Feldman will begin her position January 1, 2008. Her selection followed an international search led a by an eleven-person search committee established by the museum’s Board of Trustees.

Ms. Feldman has been director of the Memphis Brooks Museum of Art since 1999, and brings a variety of museum experience to the MIA. She succeeds William M. Griswold, who is leaving to become director of the Morgan Library & Museum in New York, N.Y. at the end of the year.

“We are extremely excited to announce Ms. Feldman’s appointment as Director and President of the Minneapolis Institute of Art,” said Brian Palmer, Chairman of the Board of Trustees and Search Committee Chair. “There were several outstanding candidates who expressed interest in leading the MIA due to the depth and quality of our permanent collection and the reputation of this great institution.” He continued, “While Kaywin’s academic and museum management background is impressive, we believe her energy, vision, and dynamic leadership skills will measurably assist the MIA as we continue to advance to the next level locally, nationally, and internationally.”

“I am thrilled to have been selected as the next director and president of the Minneapolis Institute of Art,” said Ms. Feldman. “My husband and I look forward to joining the vibrant cultural arts community in the Twin Cities and we are pleased to be a part of a community so well known for its philanthropy and for having so many committed collectors. I look forward to working at such a fine institution with a long history of excellence in its collections, exhibitions, and programs. I have immense admiration for Evan Maurer and Bill Griswold and am honored to continue their good work and feel fortunate to have the opportunity to work with such an excellent staff and board in serving the community and taking the museum to new heights.”

As Director of the Memphis Brooks Museum of Art, Tennessee’s oldest and largest encyclopedic art museum, Ms. Feldman has overseen major acquisitions in all areas of the permanent collection and significantly increased works by African-American artists. During her nine-year tenure, the museum’s membership tripled, attendance increased by 35%, and a $5 million lead gift for a proposed capital campaign, the largest gift in the institution’s history, was secured.

Prior to her appointment at the Brooks Museum, Ms. Feldman was the Executive Director of Fresno Metropolitan Museum of Art, History & Science in California, where she had previously been Director of Exhibitions/Curator of Art. She started her career volunteering and working at the British Museum in London. Ms. Feldman currently serves as secretary of the board of the Association of Art Museum Directors (AAMD).

Ms. Feldman holds a master’s degree in Art History from The Courtauld Institute of Art in London, as well as a master’s degree in Museum Studies from the Institute of Archaeology, University of London. She received her bachelor’s degree in Classical Archaeology from the University of Michigan, Phi Beta Kappa.

About the Minneapolis Institute of Art
The Minneapolis Institute of Art (MIA), home to one of the finest encyclopedic art collections in the country, houses nearly 100,000 works of art representing more than 5,000 years of world history. Internationally renowned for its extensive collection of Chinese and Japanese art, other highlights of the permanent collection include European masterworks by Rembrandt, Poussin, and van Gogh; modern and contemporary paintings and sculpture by Picasso, Matisse, Mondrian, Stella, and Close; as well as internationally significant collections of decorative arts, Modernist design, photographs, prints and drawings, and Asian, African, and Native American art. General admission is always free. Some special exhibitions have a nominal admission fee. Museum hours: Sunday, 11 a.m.-5 p.m.; Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday, 10 a.m.-5 p.m.; Thursday, 10 a.m.-9 p.m.; Closed Monday. For more information, call (612) 870-3131 or visit www.artsmia.org.