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So sad!
So no info on how much he’ll be paid even though he won’t be employed or what part if any of his contract he will forfeit.
The exact details would be confidential, but since his contract ran through 2026, I assume he will be paid out in full on the remaining portion. He was probably given the option of resigning in lieu of termination. But, since few, if any, executive employment contracts would list “public relations disaster” as just cause for termination, and to avoid an ugly legal fight adding to the drama, I assume Newfields accepted his full payout as the cost of cleaning house and rebuilding public trust.
Obviously, neither Venable, nor the Board, expected the condemnation to be so swift, sustained, or widespread (it made even international news). I find it interesting Venable’s resignation followed the Board’s meeting the day before with a representative from the Lilly Endowment. The Endowment probably realized they would not be able to justify continuing to support the museum in light of the widespread and sustained public condemnation and informed the Board of this. The Board saw one of their major and most prominent funders say “bye, bye” and heard about all the membership cancellation requests, and realized they had no choice but to ask for Venable’s resignation. Furthermore, Venable has long been held in contempt by the members of the professional art world community who find what they view as his profit over mission focus offensive and threatening—they have long wanted him banished from the art world, and they got the perfect opportunity to push for it. So, it goes.
I believe the job listing was a big mistake and indicative of a systemic problem with the management and governance of Newfields, but I did not think on its face it justified Venable’s termination. However, when an organization loses the confidence of its community and all the other major stakeholders, i.e. its employees, its donors, etc., then the leadership has to go. No organization can function if there is no confidence in its leadership.
1200 people and 85 employees sign a petition or letter out of a metro area of 1.3 million. Totally ridiculous
Rhea P. Newfields employs 300 people, so 85 employees is almost 1/3 of the workforce. If a third of the employees of any organization signed a letter asking for the CEO’s resignation, it would be a major problem. Also, the petition had over 2,000 signatures before Venable resigned, and many of the people who signed the petition were prominent individuals in the national and local museum and arts and culture field. Newfields was also publicly condemned by the Arts Council of Indianapolis, the Central Indiana Community Foundation, the Indianapolis Chapter of the American Institute of Graphic Arts, and other prominent organizations. So, it is not just quantity, but the quality of the people and organizations who condemned Newfields’ statements and actions. Moreover, there was no groundswell of support for Venable coming from the rest of the metropolitan region. So, there you go. Whether you think the outcry was “ridiculous” or not is a moot point–Venable is gone, and others in a similar position would do well to learn from his unfortunate example.
I’m guessing there were some others involved in drafting this. How deep are they going to clean house?
When will the mob be stopped from dictating who can work where and what mistakes can be made?
Never apparently. Woke cancel culture is the new norm unfortunately…
You seriously see advertising for someone to keep “white art” patrons is ok. It is not cancel culture it is a choice. I do not wish to spend my money in donations, patronage or with companies that would think a “white” designation or reference on anything was acceptable.
This is the world that has been created by everybody being labeled according to what group they are a part of.
All in an effort to gain power over people. Let’s enjoy it together.
The party that said they want to “unify now” has been nothing but the party of division for decades…that’s how they exert control and increasing power for their latest flavor: #acidRain, #nextIceAge, #GlobalWarming, #ClimateChange #meToo #BLM #coronavirus #woke
Constraint distractions, no real progress. Only for more power.
But don’t worry I bet the next Newfields CEO will be a non-gendered adjective soup thing.
I feel less violated already.
What a relief.
Let’s rename Newfields to Snowflake Fields.
Wait. I triggered myself.
Snowflake Fields has too much White Privilege.
Cupcake Fields is safer.
Don’t blame him for resigning. He had been marked for elimination by the mob. And so begins the death spiral of another institution. Get woke, go broke. Perhaps they should stage a performance art piece reenacting the riots of the spring and summer through the hallways? Allow “artists” to spray paint the walls and over “toxic” old masters pieces? A few ritual fires set? A symbolic book burning? An installation of shattered windows and a study of the way light plays off of the shards of glass? That would certainly attract more visitors and donors.
+1
People in his position are held to a higher standard for their behavior. Even if he didn’t write the job posting himself, anything that happens within that organization ultimately fell back on him.
They should have been able to foresee how the language would be interpreted and not include it. Because they didn’t, someone must be held responsible. We as a country are just now acknowledging that we are far from perfect, and taking steps like this helps us to establish a clearer view with which to tackle social issues. The only way to avoid similar situations from happening in the future is to correct them in the present. I commend Venable for stepping down without issue and hope the future for Newfields is prosperous and equitable.
Yes but you don’t see them firing the HR person who probably wrote that description.
They certainly should conduct a full investigation.
“… some employees pushed back on the wording during an all-staff meeting in January, before it was posted publicly. The letter claims Venable and Laura McGrew, senior director for guest experience and human resources, defended the language.” So there you go – the problem with the wording was brought to their attention before its release and they blew it, Buh-bye!
I don’t know how someone can justify going from having a museum that was free to everyone (with the exception of special exhibits) to a museum that charges $18 per person admission. Art should be accessible to EVERYONE at ALL TIMES and that price point puts it out of reach of many in our community. How can the IMA / Newfields justify a salary of $1M??? And, what has dropping the IMA and changing to Newfields done to attendance at the museum? I don’t recall seeing a campaign to help the community understand and embrace the new brand. How about “Indianapolis Museum of Art at Newfields”?
The museum used to be one of my favorite places to visit, going several times a year, taking in the Tiffany window which always took my breath away, teaching my nieces about pointillism and impressionism. But, with the pricing structure, it’s gone from being one of my simple pleasures and something that inspired me to something that I miss but isn’t in the budget.
Yes, and art museums shouldn’t have to pay for building and grounds maintenance, utilities, employees, etc. It should all be free! While we’re at it, everything should be free! What sort of Shangri-La do you live in?
Steven J….IMA has a $360 million endowment. Perhaps you weren’t aware of that?
Steven J…perhaps paying Venable a salary of $753,667 per year with bonuses of $30,935 per year was excessive? Plus he gets a Golden Hill mansion (Westerley) to live in rent free! I think he was living in Shangri-La!,,,,https://tclf.org/newfields-westerley-house-gardens
David S, How much do you think the next Newfields’ President will make? Less? I doubt it. Endowments are rarely used to supplement operations. How much do you think it should cost to attend a first-class art museum? Same as a H.S. basketball game? What you think the museums in Chicago cost to attend? If it’s important to you that admission to Newfields be subsidized, then I suggest you begin raising an endowment for that specific purpose. Otherwise, it costs money to operate and maintain Newfields and it’s childish to think someone should subsidize your attendance.
The Board should have held firm. Everyone is scared. It will be interesting to see what the Board of Governor’s does now to raise enough money to keep the place going. I think the people who sustain the museum through their donations and volunteerism should be the ones deciding on the direction they take.
Dr. Venable is cancelled. So it goes.
Blind-spot racism is cancelled.
I love people crying about cancel culture when it is a pure example of capitalism at work. The market rewards what it likes and cancels what it doesn’t. The economics is weighed by both the producer and the customer and the market decides what succeeds and what doesn’t. This guy would not have been removed if the museum felt it would hurt their business more than it would help.
Cancel culture wins once again. Sad
Blind-spot racism is cancelled..
Vote with your pocketbook. See how much money Newfields/IMA raises without their traditional audience.
I am driven to pass judgement on the comments above. It’s one of the pleasures of weighing in later in the “news cycle”. Christopher B has posted the most well written and positioned response(s). There are others, too, of course, but Christopher B. articulates exceptionally well and his points are reasoned and direct. He has clear knowledge of the dynamics of how art functions (or should function) in our society while navigating the landscape of inclusion and diversity.
Those who make statements about “cancel culture” and infer sarcastically that “why not make everything free” really don’t get it. Their comments are intentional distractions.
Our museum’s fiscal integrity as it meets the traditional audience needs and, while working to ensure diversity and inclusion, should be highly achievable goals. Both can and should exist. Reasonable people know that nothing is “free” and even our most beloved Lilly Endowment (for which we are all grateful), along with virtually ever other benefactor, black or white, can trace their wealth back to a man or woman who has worked hard to ensure their family’s needs are met and that people like Venable can make nearly $1M a year. (Oh…it is a nice house, too!) And it is because of those hard working men and women that ALL of us who benefit from their hard work should have enough empathy to understand that, yes, they may simply be unable to afford the ticket to entry. But to also consider…..they have paid their dues.
Can you imagine (or do you even want to?) an underserved member of our community visiting the museum and being inspired in a way that is life changing. That is what art is and that is the impact it can have. We should ALL want everyone who would want to have the ability to visit an institution like Newfields (but can’t because of the “cost of entry”) to have that barrier taken away. And we should want that in the hope that the beauty and peace represented in art brings new or renewed hope for them while feeding their soul. That is good for our community and for our world.
I would note that St. Louis has a really fine art museum in Forest Park that is free to all. Yes they charge for parking but there is plenty of free parking as well. A few years ago I attended the exhibition by Kehinde Wiley, a contemporary black artist. The exhibition featured larger than life size paintings of black St. Louis residents, posed similarly to famous paintings from various time periods in the galleries, but rendered in contemporary clothing and very colorful backgrounds. It was a fabulous exhibit and very popular. It was just a little while since the Ferguson events around Michael Brown’s death by police, so this was a timely attempt by the institution to help the community heal. I think this is one of the things art can do for a community, but at Newfields there was always too much controversy for it to be effective in this role.
Mary, St. Louis does indeed have a fine art museum and it is TAXPAYER-supported by a property tax that applies not just to the City of St. Louis, but to all the surrounding suburbs in St. Louis County. If Indianapolis wants a free admission art museum, then the citizens of the Indianapolis metropolitan area can decide to tax themselves to pay for it. I think it would be a good idea, and I support tax revenue supporting arts and culture. Also, since Indianapolis metropolitan area residents seem to have no problem paying an additional sales tax to support the billionaire Colts owners by paying for their football stadium, I would think they should not object to paying a more modest tax to provide free access to what is an exceptional art collection.