The Art Institute of Chicago fired more than 150 volunteers and suspended its decades-long dysfunctional program after the famed museum hired a wake-up consulting firm that encouraged the cultural institution to release ‘rich white’ guides and promote ‘equality and diversity’ ‘ Advised to give priority.
Worse, mostly elderly doctors, who are well aware of the exhibits in the nearly 150-year-old museum on the lake. michigan, was terminated by email on 3 September because it wanted to ‘rebuild our program from the ground up’.
The museum—featuring prominently in the 1986 hit Ferris Beuler’s Day Off—hired The Equity Project, a Colorado-based consulting firm that found that the program was outdated and often leaned toward wealthy white women and included There were too many barriers to stop people of color. from entering the program.
“Sometimes equity requires bold action and action,” said Monica Williams, Executive Producer of the Equity Project. ‘You really have to break and disrupt the systems that are designed to capture some and keep others out.’
The Art Institute of Chicago bills itself as ‘Downtown Chicago’s #1 Museum’
Equity Project executive producer Monica Williams defended the museum’s decision. Equity Project consults with the Art Institute of Chicago on its new plan
The Equity Project was founded in response to Donald Trump’s victory in the 2016 presidential election.
‘Today, the Equity Project brings transformational action to organizations around the world,’ company bio claims. ‘Their expertise lies in creating gracious spaces for people to show up and developing actionable strategies to help organizations advance their equity efforts.’
Just last year, 186 workers – about 30 percent of the museum’s staff – called for ‘transparency’ and ‘racial equality’ between layoffs.
Art Institute president Robert Levy wrote an op-ed defending the decision, saying plans to do so had been in the works for 12 years.
Serious self-reflection and participatory, healthy action is needed if we are to remain relevant to a changing audience seeking to engage with the arts, he wrote.
Veronica Stein, executive director of the Art Institute of Chicago Learning and Public Engagement, sent an email to the museum’s doctors on September 3 telling them about the program because they knew it was ending.
The museum told USA Today that the break is part of a “hybrid model that includes paid and volunteer teachers” of a “multi-year transition”.
NS Chicago Tribune An op-ed criticized the move and suggested that they instead hire more diverse doctors.
Art Institute president Robert Levy (pictured) wrote an op-ed defending the decision, saying plans to do so had been in the works for 12 years
Barbara Kruger’s ‘Untitled (Question), 1990/2021’ Showcasing Chicago’s Historic Riverfront at the Museum First in October
The performance was part of a series dedicated to the famous New Jersey-born artist Kruger.
‘Why not spend some time recruiting new, diverse doctors? Why not grow the core in such a way that it is fresh? Why not help doctors who need help with expenses or child care? Why isn’t there a hybrid model, at least until the current doctors run out?’ The board wrote
The president of what is known as the ‘Dosant Council’ of the institute said the move was a complete setback.
Gigi Wafis, who has been innocent for almost two decades, said, ‘We had no idea. ‘We were very surprised. I was honestly a little bewildered.’
In the weeks that followed, Wafis said there was still no indication of what the new plans for the Art Institute of Chicago would look like.
The doctors responded with a letter of protest explaining that the condition required training twice a week for 18 months, five years of research and writing, and further training.
The conservative media has shown outrage. Chicago columnist john casso Proof of the plan is said to have brought ‘Idiocracy’ to America, a reference to a Mike Judge film from 2006.
‘What the Art Institute did to its innocent volunteers – not all rich and white – was truly shameful. He loves art. They study art,’ he wrote.
‘And those of us who have been lucky enough to have visited the masterpieces there and listened to the doctors don’t think about the poor demographics. Only racists think about the skin. We cringe at their knowledge and passion and ability to communicate.
Several museums have considered what changes they should make in the wake of Black Lives Matter protests in the summer of 2020.
Williams of the Equity Project says the Art Institute’s changes will open up space for people who can’t work weekdays or do unpaid work.
If passive programs become paid posts, it would help museums move away from ‘a particular demographic of mostly white and wealthy people’.
One of two bronze lions at the entrance of The Art Institute in Chicago.
The Grand Staircase is one of the many fascinating elements of the Art Institute
“Faulty programs have kept the whiteness in these places,” Williams said. ‘This is part of the problem.’
Wafis believes that while there is a lack of diversity among volunteers, the museum should adopt a different strategy.
“We want to build on what we currently have so that we don’t lose the depth and breadth of experience and knowledge, but we add to it,” Wafis said.
The solution would be to return doctors, but move to a hybrid model where a few salaried teachers would complement the volunteer corps.
She also said that doctors themselves can recruit from more diverse communities and facilitate co-travel with community members outside the museum.
Williams said she respected the Art Institute of Chicago’s decision.
“The stories that are told are based on a doctor’s experience or expertise, often come from a white space and do not reflect everyone’s experience,” he said. ‘So we really need to think critically about how stories are told and who tells them.
.