Despite 16 years experience as director of the University's art museum and the development of a $23 million home for the University's art collections to his credit, Michael Mezzatesta will not be in charge when the new Nasher Museum of Art opens its doors in 2004.
President Nan Keohane and Provost Peter Lange announced Friday that Mezzatesta will not be rehired when his current five-year term ends at the end of August. Sarah Schroth, the curator of DUMA, will serve as interim director while the University conducts an international search for a permanent replacement for Mezzatesta during the coming year.
The decision not to renew Mezzatesta's contract caught many off guard, both within and outside of the University.
"We were somewhat taken by surprise because we didn't expect there to be a change in leadership," said Bruce Evans, public relations specialist for DUMA. "This took place at the end of Dr. Mezzatesta's contract, as part of his review process. In that regard, you might expect the possibility of a change, but really it was a complete surprise."
Mezzatesta could not be reached for comment.
Lange said Mezzatesta was "extremely disappointed" with the decision, but did not wish to comment further on Mezzatesta's reaction to the decision. Lange also said DUMA staffers were initially confused about the decision, but that many of them have come to understand the need for new leadership.
"We're all going through a process of grieving, in effect, because our leader is leaving, but I think we'll move on and rally under whomever is brought in," Evans said.
Lange said the decision stemmed from a desire to create one of the premier university museums in the country.
"We are looking for a director who can meet the very high expectations we have for the museum," Lange said. "It was our judgment that [Mezzatesta] might not be able to carry the museum to that level, even though he's been an excellent director with the things he's had to do with the current museum, and with the things he had to do to get the new museum."
Keohane added that she and Lange did not reach the decision lightly, recognizing Mezzatesta's commitment to the new museum, with all its setbacks and difficulties.
"After a great deal of thought and discussion and consultation with people who know the museum world... the provost and I decided not to appoint him for a fourth five-year term," Keohane wrote in an e-mail. "Michael has done a great job in many ways, but in our best judgment, it's time now to appoint a new director who can build on the foundations he has laid, and bring a new level of exhibitions and new strength to our collections in the museum in the years ahead."
Among those opposed to the University's decision not to rehire Mezzatesta is Sarah Freedman, a Divinity School secretary, who lent a piece of art from her personal collection to DUMA under Mezzatesta's leadership.
"He gets along so beautifully with friends of the museum," Freedman said, noting that Mezzatesta has secured some impressive art collections for the new museum. "I've worked in museums, and [DUMA] was a really happy place [under Mezzatesta], which you don't always find in college departments, or in art museums for that matter."
Freedman added that Keohane and Lange were being too competitive in terms of the new museum. "They think it's a basketball game where you've got to be number one," Freedman said. "To heck with civility, humanity, et cetera."
Despite murmurings that some museum staffers may have been dissatisfied with Mezzatesta's leadership in recent years, no one seemed to have anything negative to say about the departing director. Schroth declined to comment on the decision not to renew Mezzatesta's contract, instead referring all questions to Evans, DUMA's public relations specialist.
"I personally feel like he's a very good leader," Evans said. "I've been happy to work here and be associated with him, and I think he will move on and do great things elsewhere."
As DUMA director since 1987, Mezzatesta spent years developing and fundraising for the new museum, which will open in the fall of 2004. He enlisted renowned architect Rafael ViA±oly to design the $23 million structure and has overseen the beginning stages of construction at the new site.
Mezzatesta said at the end of April that he was incredibly excited about the prospect of the new museum, which will be three times larger than the current DUMA facility. "It will change the way arts are perceived at Duke," he said.
Mezzatesta was also responsible for such initiatives as the student curatorial program and for outreach to alumni and other art lovers regarding the importance of the arts at the University, Keohane said in a statement.
After his current term ends Aug. 31, Mezzatesta will be eligible for a year-long paid sabbatical, during which he can explore other interests and look for other job opportunities. Some of Mezzatesta's supporters said the decision by Keohane and Lange comes at a particularly bad time, as years of planning and work are just starting to become a reality.
"It's too bad, because now they're building the new museum and he can't enjoy that," Freedman said.
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