Former Speed Museum director resigns from Indiana art museum over job posting controversy Domenica Bongiovanni, Indianapolis Star
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Four days after an Indiana art museum first apologized for language in a job description for a new director, its boards issued a public statement that President Charles Venable, former director of the Speed Art Museum, has resigned and that they plan to move forward with more changes We are sorry. We have made mistakes. We have let you down, the statement read. We are ashamed of Newfields’ leadership and of ourselves. We have ignored, excluded, and disappointed members of our community and staff. We pledge to do better. For those expressing outrage and frustration we are listening.
Charles Venable resigns from Newfields after job posting provoked allegations of racism newsnirvana.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from newsnirvana.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Feb 16, 2021 / 06:27 PM EST
INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) In a letter released Tuesday, dozens of anonymous Newfields staff members asked for the museum’s president to step down after Newfields’ response to a job posting that cited its “traditional, core, white art audience.”
The letter, attributed to a group of 85 Newfields staff and stakeholders, said staff are “disheartened” by the museum’s lack of leadership in addressing racial equity, calling the posting and the museum’s response to uproar about it “a symptom of a much larger problem.”
The letter goes on to say that while President Charles Venable managed to “financially stabilize” Newfields and get through the pandemic “without sacrificing employees to stay afloat,” staff members are frustrated by what they see as leadership breaking the trust of the community and “do not see a way forward if Dr. Charles Venable remains at the helm of our institution.”
Newfields Director Charles Venable Has Resigned After Posting a Job Ad That Sparked Allegations of Racism
The museum came under fire for describing its traditional core, white art audience.”
Newfields director Charles Venable. Photo courtesy of Newfields.
Charles Venable has resigned as director and CEO of Newfields after the Indianapolis museum posted a job listing that sparked widespread criticism.
The post said the candidate for the director job should seek to “attract a broader and more diverse audience while maintaining the museum’s traditional core, white art audience.”
After immediately coming under fire, the museum apologized for the language and edited the description to refer instead to a “traditional core art audience.” Venable told the
His departure comes in the wake of a job posting, since corrected, that described the museum’s core audience as “white,” and amid criticism from a trustee, some staff and local artists.