October 30, 2025 • 23 mins
H. Alexander Rich, Ph.D. President & CEO, The Gibbes Museum of Art
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Iard Media presents CEOs You Should Know. CEOs You Should
Know Charleston is brought to you by SC two fifty
Charleston Www dot SC two fifty Charleston dot Org.
Speaker 2 (00:11):
I'm Michael Blaze. Welcome to CEOs you Should Know. With
me today is h Alexander Rich, CEO of the Gibbs
Museum of Art. Welcome alex Thanks so much for having me.
Absolutely so please explain to our listeners who don't know
what the Gibbs Museum of Art offers and what its
mission is.
Speaker 3 (00:27):
Well, the Gibbs Museum of Art is the only art
museum of Charleston, South Carolina, so we have a great
bona fide leading people to us and hopefully getting more
and more people to enjoy us. So we are an
art museum that was established in eighteen fifty eight as
the Carolina Art Association. Our present building was constructed in
nineteen oh five and we were expanding the museum at present.
(00:48):
But we present art of the Globe in addition to
the stories of the American South and the story of
Charleston through art. So we really strive to create a
great holistic visitor experience with robust and exhibitions and events
all year long. So we are Charleston's art museum and
very proudly so what a rich history.
Speaker 2 (01:08):
And I mean, I guess you can say that about
any museum, that's the whole idea.
Speaker 3 (01:12):
Right, right, but especially.
Speaker 2 (01:14):
The Gibbs because it's been here so long and your
body of art encompasses, like you said, I mean all
across the world.
Speaker 3 (01:21):
Right, Yeah. I mean what's exciting is, you know, every
museum serves a purpose for whatever town or city it's in,
and Charleston is one of the four original cities of
the United States. So we're really proud to be the
art museum of such a quintessential American city. And we
feel a great responsibility or own us upon us to
be able to tell those broad stories and tell truthful
stories through art and art history. And we really hope
(01:43):
that you know, locals and our immediate community, as well
as all the tourists coming to visit or see Charleston
for the first time returning to Charleston, know that the
Gibbs is, you know, a premier stop along their way,
and we take that very very seriously. You know, of
all times in the world, running an art museum or
being a member of an art museum, or being a
staff member of an art museum holds really great weight
(02:05):
because we take what we do really seriously.
Speaker 2 (02:07):
Now, what about exhibits, you know, you think what do
you have going on right now that you think people
should know about?
Speaker 3 (02:12):
So when anybody comes to the Gives, we'll always have
something new on view. We have a ten thousand object
permanent collections, so that's a really vast repository of global
history and with a great emphasis on again art of
Charleston and the American South. So you'll always get to
see works on our permanent collection. They'll always be on view,
and we will rotate those out more and more in
the coming months. Again that's one of my missions coming
(02:34):
into the museum as the new CEO. But also we
always have changing rotating exhibitions really excitingly actually opening in October.
So this month we are opening up a Rembrandt exhibition,
and so that's one of those quote unquote blockbuster shows.
That's where you take an iconic name from art history
and you present something really special, and in this case
(02:54):
it's Rembrand's etchings. And this is the first time rembrands
etchings from the Rembrandt House in Amsterdam have come to
the US, so we are the first stop on their
US tour, which is really great for us. It is
a moment for us to really shine and to offer
an experience that I think most people will not have
had unless they've literally been to Amsterdam and gone to
the Rembrant House, and they'll gain a whole new set
(03:16):
of insights into the world of Rembrandt, who again is
one of those most recognizable names of all of art history.
Speaker 2 (03:22):
And not to get too far in the weeds here,
but it always interested me what a huge responsibility it
is to not only have to take care of the
artwork that you have on hand, but when you curate
these subjects, these artworks, these pieces of history from somewhere else.
You're responsible for them and to keep them, you know,
(03:42):
in good shape and not destroy them. You know, what
does that look like locally in the museum taking care
of your art How much of a task is that.
Speaker 3 (03:51):
It's a terrific question, you know, you know, I was
in my former position, I was both a museum director,
curator and the chair of Department of our History museum
Studies in Florida, and so one of the quintessential questions
I was always thinking about, no matter which had I
was wearing, was what is the role of a museum professional?
And I always think since I was four years old,
I thought, you know, the museum world was the most
(04:12):
fascinating world and fascinating profession possible. And so many people
have they gained insight as you're asking into what we do.
You know, the care for the objects, the handling of
the objects, the shipping of the objects, the creating of
the objects, the temperature control needed for the objects. There's
a lot of work that goes into even just getting
works up on display that nobody or most people do
(04:32):
not get to know. And so one of the things
I hope we do more and more in the museum world,
but also more specifically at the Gibbs, is reveal a
little bit more about the process that goes into putting
up exhibitions or designing programs, because it's fascinating what happens
behind the scenes, and it's not like you to snap
a finger and suddenly a whole big exhibition is on
the walls. There are months, if not years and years
of work and preparation that go into putting up a
(04:55):
show and I think it's personally fascinating. I wouldn't be
in this career otherwise. And we have such a dedicated,
wonderful team at the Gibbs, real experts in all of
their fields who make sure that everything looks perfect by
the time the public sees it, but nobody really gets
to fully see what goes on in terms of how
it all comes together over the months and years leading
up to it. So it's a it's an amazing world
and I'm you know, I'm really proud to be, you know,
(05:16):
the CEO over an expert team at the Gibbs.
Speaker 2 (05:19):
Now, if you ever had an instance where in artwork
got damaged either by the public or you know, by
the handlers or anything like that.
Speaker 3 (05:26):
Oh yeah, you know, there's lots of stories from the
crypt of the museum world. I think anybody who has
been in any part of a museum has had to
grapple with this, you know. And there are instances that
range from yet pure accidents where suddenly somebody got too
close to a work of art or somebody touched a
work of art. There's been things where, you know, humidity
control has shifted, say a hurricane is ripping through Florida
(05:47):
or ripping through Charleston and we have to take works
of art off the wall, or something just happens, you know,
the HVAC system goes on the fritz, and we have
to take works of our off the wall. We have
to be very responsible and very caring for the objects,
whether they are our own, which then we have our
own set of rules for what we do in terms
of the conservation or care or protection of the works.
But especially if we are borrowing works from some other
(06:07):
lender around the world or across the country, we have
to make sure that we inform them immediately and we
work with them to make sure that you know what
is what's the next step here. And conservation of art
works is a fascinating field, and you know, we're always
trying to think about the balance between remaining true to
what the artist's original intentions were with the work, but
also making sure the work can be enjoyed for the
(06:27):
years to come. And so we hope, against hope that
will never happen, and it happens very rarely because we
usually have great security teams and great eyes on all
the artworks at all times. But things like that do happen.
And while it's unfortunate, we hope that none of it's intentional.
And I think if there's intentional damage to our work,
that's a completely different story. That's a crime, certainly. But
when we have incidents that happen with school kids or
(06:50):
just members of the public, things can happen innocently, and
again we deal with it as it comes, but we
really hope it's a rare, rare occasion.
Speaker 2 (06:56):
Sure, And I know one of the big challenges that
any museum faces, I know is patronage and donations, and
I'm sure the Gibbs is no different. If somebody is
interested in donating or becoming a member of your society,
like where should they reach out? Where should they start?
Speaker 3 (07:12):
Yeah, there's so many different ways, and we are a
nonprofit and so we really do, you know, live and
you know, subsist off of donations and the generosity of
those members of the public. And there's so many ways
to support the museum itself and museums anywhere, but specifically
the Gibbs. Just becoming a member of the Gibbs is
a great way to begin. And you know, if anybody
goes to Gibbs Museum dot org, that's Gibbes Museum dot org.
(07:35):
They can find out ways that they can get become
involved in the museum. You know, memberships start at a
low rate, and then you can have family memberships, but
also getting involved in our committees or volunteering for the
museum or if you again want to support us in
big ways. We have a major expansion coming up and
we're always looking for no supporters for growing the museum
and growing the opportunities for the museum to really shine
(07:56):
as a cultural staple of the community. So there's no
dearth of ways to get involved, and we welcome everybody.
We want to be a very welcoming organization and that's
one of my missions again as the new CEO, is
to make sure that we are accessible to everybody, that
we're meeting everyone where they are, and we make the
museum a go to place for culture and art experiences
(08:16):
for everyone who's coming to Charleston or who is in Charleston.
Speaker 2 (08:18):
Already Alice Snell that you're the new CEO, it's kind
of a culmination of a lot of different things coming
together from our conversation before we went on the air. Here,
you've worn many different hats. Give us a little bit
of your background in the different positions that you've helped.
Speaker 3 (08:36):
Yeah, I mean, there are a lot of ways that
I think about what's formed me for me to be
where I am today. I'm a native New Yorker, so
I literally grew up like in the Crucible of Art.
I grew up on eighty second Street on the Upper
East Side of Manhattan, so you know, it's a straight
shot to the Metropolitan Museum of Art. So I always
love museums more than anything else in the world. Where
some kids wanted to be astronauts, I always wanted to
(08:57):
be My mom would say, always wanted to a museumed
or probably from the time I was twelve or thirteen,
and so I knew that that was kind of the
path I would be taking. But along the way, you know,
I've worked at museums and interned at museums. I was
a tenured professor until just a few months ago in
Florida at Florida Southern College, and I was also the
executive director and chief curator of the city's museum. And
(09:19):
it was very exciting to be able to do all
the things I love at once. I am at my core.
I'm a professor, I love to teach about art. I
was a professor for eighteen years, so this is actually
the first time since I was in my twenties that
I've not been physically in the classroom teaching the next
generation of art historians. But I loved balancing out being
a professor with also running a museum and being his curator.
(09:40):
So my newest role, I'm no longer officially a professor.
I gave up tenure to take this job as president
CEO of the Gibbs, But I always am a professor.
I think anybody who meets me knows that I itched
to teach, I itch to instruct, and I like to
think that I'm the type of CEO that is a
professor who leads a museum because I put a lot
of value on the intellectual experience and the learning experience,
(10:03):
and the fact that we are at heart an educational
organization and everything we really do is about the vital
and more holistic visitor and learning experience. So you know,
there are many ways to be a CEO, there are
many ways to be a museum president or museum director. Really,
I do very much look through the lens of being
a professor as a really valuable way to be able
to lead an organization and in this case, to lead
(10:25):
it into its future, being aware of what's been happening
in the classroom, what the conversations are. You know, we're
not an academic museum. I've run an academic museum and
I've expanded an academic museum. But again, the differences between
a general museum, you know, a privately owned city museum
versus an academic city museum are not that huge. And
I think all of our intentions for the vital experience
(10:48):
and everyone walks in learns something says, Wow, this is
really cool, and I can't believe I didn't know that before.
I can't believe I never knew about that artist, or
I learned something new about Rembrandt today that I never
would have expected. And that's really kind of the most
rewarding part about this job, and being in this profession
and seeing all the work of you know, the teams
that I've worked with in the past and the teams
that I get to work with in the present, getting
(11:09):
to see the value of everything they do be evaluated
and seen and enjoyed by members of the public. And
it's a really rewarding field. And again that speaks to
me as a professor. I really want to see my
entire team shine and I want to see each visitor
really grow from their experience at the museum.
Speaker 2 (11:26):
Well, you've talked about your professional background. It always fascinates
me to learn how people have grown into their roles
not only through their professional lives, but also their personal
lives and their upbringing. So tell us about your family.
Was your family did you go to museums on weekends
and you know, were you introduced to art and history
(11:47):
and museums by your family or is that something that
you grew an interest on your own.
Speaker 3 (11:52):
Now I think that you know, museums, I think were
again at the core of my identity. Both my parents
are lawyers, and I have an older sister who is
not to admittedly say that she is not artistic. I
used to draw the covers for her book reports, even
though she's four older, four years older than I am
when I was already when I was still in like
elementary school. But I was the artistic kid in the family,
and because I was a cartoonist from around age two,
(12:15):
museums are always the go to location for my family
to bring me. As you know, allowing me to see
the world through, you know, the eyes of other artists
and to see the way the other art was created.
My dad's father, specifically my grandpa John, who was a
physician in New York City. He was an art connoisseur,
at least an amateur connoisseur. So every time he and
I got together, as opposed to say, like going to
(12:35):
movies or going to the playground, he and I would
go to all of the city's museums. So I really
I owe credit, of course to my parents, but especially
also to my grandfather for instilling in me what I
didn't know was art history at the time, or enjoyment
of art history. So that was really, you forming the
core of who I was. I was a cartoonist, was
how I identified, probably through the time when I was eighteen.
(12:55):
But along the way, I was also in a museum enthusiast,
such that again, you know, when I was a tween
or early teen, my mom said, Alex's dream would be
one day to be you know, the director of the
met She threw out there, and so you know, I
started to work at museums or intern at museums. You know,
through the course of my late high school years and
my college years, and at sixteen I was a high
school aprentice at the Met, which was basically my absolute
(13:17):
dream come true. It was the most incredible experience, and
I can look back and say it was the seminal
experience of my life. And then in college I worked
at city museums as well, back at the Whitney Museum
in college and back again at the Met, and then
in graduate school I went back to the Whitney Museum
during grad school. And then I got in the classroom,
and the classroom was the most natural thing for me.
And I was inherently a pretty shy kid. I am
(13:37):
socially more introverted than I am extroverted. But getting out
in the classroom and you know, realizing that, you know,
meeting all of my knowledge base as an art historian
allowed me really to grow as a classroom professor, a speaker,
a communicator. And I think all that, per your question,
you know, led up to being what I believe is
a strong museum leader, someone who you really loves art
(13:59):
from my earliest memories, but also loves the idea of
making other people love art. I always said, as a professor,
I was teaching to the most skeptical student in the classroom,
the kid who comes in and says, I know nothing
about art, nothing about art history. And my goal at
the end of that term, just like my goal is
with everybody who walks into a museum, either you know,
excitedly or begrudgingly, is to make sure that they love
art or at least appreciate the value of art at
(14:21):
the end of their experience.
Speaker 2 (14:23):
Aside from your very experience that we just learned about,
you know, professionally, what makes your leadership unique from others
in your field?
Speaker 3 (14:31):
Do you think it's a great question. I mean, it's
always hard to step outside yourself and evaluate what makes
you a good or bad or poor leader. I believe
I'm a really good leader just in the fact that
you know, I approach this from a really genuine manner.
You know, nobody's in the museum business for the remuneration
by any means. But also, my love for museums is
(14:52):
as pure as it comes. It's very hard to disguise
my passion for this, and my passion bleeds into every
single action I take, and I think about museums constantly.
You know, I am my father, I have a two
year old son. And now of course family life occupies
a lot of my brain as well. And you know,
and I love my minister Schnauzer and I think about
him and how he's doing all the time. But in
my professional world, you know, even when I wake up
(15:14):
in the middle of the night, I'm always thinking about
how do we better our museums or how do we
better specifically the Gibbs Museum experience. And so it's the
constant in my mind, and it is not for my
own self satisfaction. It's really to make sure that what
my team is doing seems worthwhile and that what they're
working toward is a collective goal. And I just want museums.
(15:35):
I mean, maybe naively, I really want everyone to really
love every museum they go to and say, wow, this
is so cool, and that's the museum geek in me
as a kid. But I'm really driven by that idea
that everybody can and should love museums. And I know
that not everybody will or not that everyone does, but
I'm driven by that in a way that I think
(15:55):
I'm sure many others share, but it really goes down
to the core of who I am. I can't express
how much museums mean to me. It means the little
kid in me, and then I actually get to be
the president and CEO of the Art Museum of Charleston
is something that I continue to pinch myself about today
because the little kid in me probably never would have
imagined this day would have arrived. And so that's what
(16:18):
really drives me again, you know, the full blown, pure
love of museums, and that is factored into every single
decision I make, or conversation I have, or hope for
the future of the Gibbs goes back to the core
of just who I've been as long as I can remember.
Speaker 2 (16:36):
I think you've probably touched on this already, But what's
the single philosophy that drives you each day.
Speaker 3 (16:43):
I'm doing the best, doing the best I can, and
making sure that other people get the ability to shine
and thrive. You know, I am someone who places probably
the greatest value on truth. I am someone who stands
by being truthful, tactful and truthful and candid, but also
you knowing what to say and when to say it.
(17:04):
But also I value that in others and so I'm
very open to ideas. I love out of the box thinking.
My staff knows that that I came in saying bring
me your ideas. Rarely, well, I reject them. I'm also
someone who has enough obsessiveness that I really think about
things all the way through to the end result. I
really do think about what the end game is. I think, well,
(17:25):
if we do this, and we do this, what is
the end result? What are the different paths that could
happen here? What is the worst case scenario? What's the
best case scenario. So I don't act rashly, but I
give a lot of thought about the rationality and the
realism of the way that we make choices and we
design programs and run exhibitions, and so I really do
think that, you know, going back to the world of
(17:50):
museums that I know, I think that that's what's really
you know, making me a CEO who loves going into
do my job every single day with the team.
Speaker 2 (18:00):
I think mentorship is so important and not everybody is
lucky enough to have a mentor. Do you have a
mentor or somebody that was a huge influence on your leadership.
Speaker 3 (18:10):
That's a great question. Yeah, I mean, actually, so you know,
when I arrived at my previous institution, I was at
Florida Southern College for eleven years. I moved from New
York City there to Florida to become an assistant professor
of our history back then not even with the museum
on the horizon. And about two years into my time
at Florida Southern, the president of Florida Southern, doctor and
(18:32):
her presenting an idea to me about what if we
were to affiliate the city museum, the then Polk Museum
of Art. With you, Florida Southern College. My jaw drop
because it's like my childhood dreams come true, because I
love to take students to museums and be able to
be involved in a museum and have this all come
together magically would be incredible. And then, you know, over
the next eight years, I became curator of the museum
(18:55):
while holding onto all of my academic duties, and then
eventually executive director and chief curator of the museum. And
that was all under the mentorship of doctor Kerr. She
was my director report, so I reported directly to the
president of the college, and I truly do owe her
so much about my style of leadership when I learned
from her about you know, making strong decisions but also
listening to others and respecting the expertise of other people,
(19:17):
you know, when it comes to fundraising and development and relations.
I really do look back, and I thank doctor Kurr
so much for that. She retired from Florida Southern Back
in August of twenty twenty four, and so I remained
for one more year after she left the school, and
then moved to Charleston in this past year. But I
really do credit professionally, and most recently, doctor Kurr with
(19:39):
a lot of what she has a mentored for me
and what she has meant to me to get me
to this point in my career. Certainly I owe that
to many, many people. But doctor Kurr comes to mind.
Speaker 2 (19:47):
Well quickly before we go, I wanted to ask you
about well. I was going to frame it as young people,
but I suppose it could be somebody of any age.
If they don't have any experience with museums and their
interests in museums and they want to pursue that, either
as a hobby or as a career, what do you
suggest they do are the what are some of the
(20:08):
first steps you suggest they take.
Speaker 3 (20:10):
Oh, it's a great question. I love this. I mean again.
You know, I led so many years being in art
history and museum studies professor. It's one of the great
fields of the world. And you know, whether it's an
art museum or a science museum or a natural history museum,
there are so many museums across this country and across
the globe that would love to have anybody who's enthusiastic
about the field. And you don't have to be an
(20:30):
art historian, you don't have to be a natural scientist
to work in the world of museums. You know, it's
a business, and you know, you know, I'm a CEO
of a nonprofit business that happens to grapple with the
art world. We have people in finance, and we have
people in events, and people in development and people in education,
and so anybody who is in any field really confine
their place in the world of museums. And I think
(20:50):
that what they should do is think about, kind of
where does your passion lie. I mean, if your passion
lies with art and art history, you know, make that
your life. If that's something it's possible to do, if
you have the support of your family or the means
to do so, or the ability to say this is
really how I want to dedicate my life. I say
everybody should go for it. Figure out kind of what
you love about museums, What fields do you like there,
(21:11):
what areas of it excite you. Also, you know, reach
out to others in the field. I can't say this
for sure for everybody, but I know personally, if anybody
reaches out to me for any sort of advice about
you know, what is it like to be a museum
CEO or a museum director, what do curators do? It's
you know, my life was driven by, you know, helping
to grow the next generation of museum professionals. And you know,
(21:32):
while I'm not in the classrooms specifically now, I would
welcome anybody to reach out anytime. You know, parents or
students who are you coming up through the field, or
youngsters who are thinking about it. I welcome that because
it's an exciting world. But also spend time in museums,
take art history classes, take art classes if it's the
art world. Again, if you're like in the college level,
it doesn't hurt to take nonprofit courses or business courses.
(21:54):
But really, you know, spending time in museums and trying
to get an internship. If that's possible, if you are
capable of doing that, it could be a really game
changing moment, because gaining insight and longer term exposure to
the museum world can either really secure that you are
fascinated by this world, or it can secure kind of
what facets of that world you're interested in. You know,
(22:16):
I think again, I go back to my mom knowing
that I was kind of always destined to do this,
which is pretty amazing. You know, thirty years ago she
predicted this, and you may know what you want to do.
I took a a somewhat winding path to return to
what was kind of expected of me by many people.
But we all can reformulate our lives, we can discover
things later on, and museums are always going to be
(22:36):
available to anyone who wants to be able to enter
the field. It is an exciting field, and again, personally,
I welcome anyone to reach out just for any discussion
of it. I think there's nothing I'm more excited about
than talking about the museum profession and the value of
everything that we and you know, the team specifically here
the Gibbs does every day.
Speaker 2 (22:52):
Yeah, I think that's great. Advice and if somebody would
like to become a member of the Gibbs Museum, you
can go to Gibbs GiB Bbesmuseum dot org and find
out more on how you can become a member and
take a part and take a part in history.
Speaker 3 (23:08):
Absolutely and we would welcome that and please just come
visit us. You know, we are a really wonderful aspect
of the cultural life of Charleston, and I promise everybody
a really great time. And we have big, big moves ahead.
We're about to undergo a major eight thousand square foot
expansion and so the time is now to you know,
re meet the Gibbs, or meet the Gibbs for the
first time, and then to come visit us. You know,
(23:29):
we'll really have a really transformed presence in early twenty
twenty seven.
Speaker 2 (23:32):
Alex who's been a pleasure. H Alexander Rich, CEO of
the Gibbs Museum of Art, Thank you so much for
your time today.
Speaker 3 (23:39):
Thank you so much for having me. I appreciate it.
Speaker 1 (23:41):
You've been listening to Iheartradios CEOs you should know, heard
every Tuesday and Saturday morning right here on this iHeartRadio station.
Iard Media presents CEOs You Should Know. CEOs You Should
Know Charleston is brought to you by SC two fifty
Charleston Www dot SC two fifty Charleston dot Org.
Speaker 2 (00:11):
I'm Michael Blaze. Welcome to CEOs you Should Know. With
me today is h Alexander Rich, CEO of the Gibbs
Museum of Art. Welcome alex Thanks so much for having me.
Absolutely so please explain to our listeners who don't know
what the Gibbs Museum of Art offers and what its
mission is.
Speaker 3 (00:27):
Well, the Gibbs Museum of Art is the only art
museum of Charleston, South Carolina, so we have a great
bona fide leading people to us and hopefully getting more
and more people to enjoy us. So we are an
art museum that was established in eighteen fifty eight as
the Carolina Art Association. Our present building was constructed in
nineteen oh five and we were expanding the museum at present.
(00:48):
But we present art of the Globe in addition to
the stories of the American South and the story of
Charleston through art. So we really strive to create a
great holistic visitor experience with robust and exhibitions and events
all year long. So we are Charleston's art museum and
very proudly so what a rich history.
Speaker 2 (01:08):
And I mean, I guess you can say that about
any museum, that's the whole idea.
Speaker 3 (01:12):
Right, right, but especially.
Speaker 2 (01:14):
The Gibbs because it's been here so long and your
body of art encompasses, like you said, I mean all
across the world.
Speaker 3 (01:21):
Right, Yeah. I mean what's exciting is, you know, every
museum serves a purpose for whatever town or city it's in,
and Charleston is one of the four original cities of
the United States. So we're really proud to be the
art museum of such a quintessential American city. And we
feel a great responsibility or own us upon us to
be able to tell those broad stories and tell truthful
stories through art and art history. And we really hope
(01:43):
that you know, locals and our immediate community, as well
as all the tourists coming to visit or see Charleston
for the first time returning to Charleston, know that the
Gibbs is, you know, a premier stop along their way,
and we take that very very seriously. You know, of
all times in the world, running an art museum or
being a member of an art museum, or being a
staff member of an art museum holds really great weight
(02:05):
because we take what we do really seriously.
Speaker 2 (02:07):
Now, what about exhibits, you know, you think what do
you have going on right now that you think people
should know about?
Speaker 3 (02:12):
So when anybody comes to the Gives, we'll always have
something new on view. We have a ten thousand object
permanent collections, so that's a really vast repository of global
history and with a great emphasis on again art of
Charleston and the American South. So you'll always get to
see works on our permanent collection. They'll always be on view,
and we will rotate those out more and more in
the coming months. Again that's one of my missions coming
(02:34):
into the museum as the new CEO. But also we
always have changing rotating exhibitions really excitingly actually opening in October.
So this month we are opening up a Rembrandt exhibition,
and so that's one of those quote unquote blockbuster shows.
That's where you take an iconic name from art history
and you present something really special, and in this case
(02:54):
it's Rembrand's etchings. And this is the first time rembrands
etchings from the Rembrandt House in Amsterdam have come to
the US, so we are the first stop on their
US tour, which is really great for us. It is
a moment for us to really shine and to offer
an experience that I think most people will not have
had unless they've literally been to Amsterdam and gone to
the Rembrant House, and they'll gain a whole new set
(03:16):
of insights into the world of Rembrandt, who again is
one of those most recognizable names of all of art history.
Speaker 2 (03:22):
And not to get too far in the weeds here,
but it always interested me what a huge responsibility it
is to not only have to take care of the
artwork that you have on hand, but when you curate
these subjects, these artworks, these pieces of history from somewhere else.
You're responsible for them and to keep them, you know,
(03:42):
in good shape and not destroy them. You know, what
does that look like locally in the museum taking care
of your art How much of a task is that.
Speaker 3 (03:51):
It's a terrific question, you know, you know, I was
in my former position, I was both a museum director,
curator and the chair of Department of our History museum
Studies in Florida, and so one of the quintessential questions
I was always thinking about, no matter which had I
was wearing, was what is the role of a museum professional?
And I always think since I was four years old,
I thought, you know, the museum world was the most
(04:12):
fascinating world and fascinating profession possible. And so many people
have they gained insight as you're asking into what we do.
You know, the care for the objects, the handling of
the objects, the shipping of the objects, the creating of
the objects, the temperature control needed for the objects. There's
a lot of work that goes into even just getting
works up on display that nobody or most people do
(04:32):
not get to know. And so one of the things
I hope we do more and more in the museum world,
but also more specifically at the Gibbs, is reveal a
little bit more about the process that goes into putting
up exhibitions or designing programs, because it's fascinating what happens
behind the scenes, and it's not like you to snap
a finger and suddenly a whole big exhibition is on
the walls. There are months, if not years and years
of work and preparation that go into putting up a
(04:55):
show and I think it's personally fascinating. I wouldn't be
in this career otherwise. And we have such a dedicated,
wonderful team at the Gibbs, real experts in all of
their fields who make sure that everything looks perfect by
the time the public sees it, but nobody really gets
to fully see what goes on in terms of how
it all comes together over the months and years leading
up to it. So it's a it's an amazing world
and I'm you know, I'm really proud to be, you know,
(05:16):
the CEO over an expert team at the Gibbs.
Speaker 2 (05:19):
Now, if you ever had an instance where in artwork
got damaged either by the public or you know, by
the handlers or anything like that.
Speaker 3 (05:26):
Oh yeah, you know, there's lots of stories from the
crypt of the museum world. I think anybody who has
been in any part of a museum has had to
grapple with this, you know. And there are instances that
range from yet pure accidents where suddenly somebody got too
close to a work of art or somebody touched a
work of art. There's been things where, you know, humidity
control has shifted, say a hurricane is ripping through Florida
(05:47):
or ripping through Charleston and we have to take works
of art off the wall, or something just happens, you know,
the HVAC system goes on the fritz, and we have
to take works of our off the wall. We have
to be very responsible and very caring for the objects,
whether they are our own, which then we have our
own set of rules for what we do in terms
of the conservation or care or protection of the works.
But especially if we are borrowing works from some other
(06:07):
lender around the world or across the country, we have
to make sure that we inform them immediately and we
work with them to make sure that you know what
is what's the next step here. And conservation of art
works is a fascinating field, and you know, we're always
trying to think about the balance between remaining true to
what the artist's original intentions were with the work, but
also making sure the work can be enjoyed for the
(06:27):
years to come. And so we hope, against hope that
will never happen, and it happens very rarely because we
usually have great security teams and great eyes on all
the artworks at all times. But things like that do happen.
And while it's unfortunate, we hope that none of it's intentional.
And I think if there's intentional damage to our work,
that's a completely different story. That's a crime, certainly. But
when we have incidents that happen with school kids or
(06:50):
just members of the public, things can happen innocently, and
again we deal with it as it comes, but we
really hope it's a rare, rare occasion.
Speaker 2 (06:56):
Sure, And I know one of the big challenges that
any museum faces, I know is patronage and donations, and
I'm sure the Gibbs is no different. If somebody is
interested in donating or becoming a member of your society,
like where should they reach out? Where should they start?
Speaker 3 (07:12):
Yeah, there's so many different ways, and we are a
nonprofit and so we really do, you know, live and
you know, subsist off of donations and the generosity of
those members of the public. And there's so many ways
to support the museum itself and museums anywhere, but specifically
the Gibbs. Just becoming a member of the Gibbs is
a great way to begin. And you know, if anybody
goes to Gibbs Museum dot org, that's Gibbes Museum dot org.
(07:35):
They can find out ways that they can get become
involved in the museum. You know, memberships start at a
low rate, and then you can have family memberships, but
also getting involved in our committees or volunteering for the
museum or if you again want to support us in
big ways. We have a major expansion coming up and
we're always looking for no supporters for growing the museum
and growing the opportunities for the museum to really shine
(07:56):
as a cultural staple of the community. So there's no
dearth of ways to get involved, and we welcome everybody.
We want to be a very welcoming organization and that's
one of my missions again as the new CEO, is
to make sure that we are accessible to everybody, that
we're meeting everyone where they are, and we make the
museum a go to place for culture and art experiences
(08:16):
for everyone who's coming to Charleston or who is in Charleston.
Speaker 2 (08:18):
Already Alice Snell that you're the new CEO, it's kind
of a culmination of a lot of different things coming
together from our conversation before we went on the air. Here,
you've worn many different hats. Give us a little bit
of your background in the different positions that you've helped.
Speaker 3 (08:36):
Yeah, I mean, there are a lot of ways that
I think about what's formed me for me to be
where I am today. I'm a native New Yorker, so
I literally grew up like in the Crucible of Art.
I grew up on eighty second Street on the Upper
East Side of Manhattan, so you know, it's a straight
shot to the Metropolitan Museum of Art. So I always
love museums more than anything else in the world. Where
some kids wanted to be astronauts, I always wanted to
(08:57):
be My mom would say, always wanted to a museumed
or probably from the time I was twelve or thirteen,
and so I knew that that was kind of the
path I would be taking. But along the way, you know,
I've worked at museums and interned at museums. I was
a tenured professor until just a few months ago in
Florida at Florida Southern College, and I was also the
executive director and chief curator of the city's museum. And
(09:19):
it was very exciting to be able to do all
the things I love at once. I am at my core.
I'm a professor, I love to teach about art. I
was a professor for eighteen years, so this is actually
the first time since I was in my twenties that
I've not been physically in the classroom teaching the next
generation of art historians. But I loved balancing out being
a professor with also running a museum and being his curator.
(09:40):
So my newest role, I'm no longer officially a professor.
I gave up tenure to take this job as president
CEO of the Gibbs, But I always am a professor.
I think anybody who meets me knows that I itched
to teach, I itch to instruct, and I like to
think that I'm the type of CEO that is a
professor who leads a museum because I put a lot
of value on the intellectual experience and the learning experience,
(10:03):
and the fact that we are at heart an educational
organization and everything we really do is about the vital
and more holistic visitor and learning experience. So you know,
there are many ways to be a CEO, there are
many ways to be a museum president or museum director. Really,
I do very much look through the lens of being
a professor as a really valuable way to be able
to lead an organization and in this case, to lead
(10:25):
it into its future, being aware of what's been happening
in the classroom, what the conversations are. You know, we're
not an academic museum. I've run an academic museum and
I've expanded an academic museum. But again, the differences between
a general museum, you know, a privately owned city museum
versus an academic city museum are not that huge. And
I think all of our intentions for the vital experience
(10:48):
and everyone walks in learns something says, Wow, this is
really cool, and I can't believe I didn't know that before.
I can't believe I never knew about that artist, or
I learned something new about Rembrandt today that I never
would have expected. And that's really kind of the most
rewarding part about this job, and being in this profession
and seeing all the work of you know, the teams
that I've worked with in the past and the teams
that I get to work with in the present, getting
(11:09):
to see the value of everything they do be evaluated
and seen and enjoyed by members of the public. And
it's a really rewarding field. And again that speaks to
me as a professor. I really want to see my
entire team shine and I want to see each visitor
really grow from their experience at the museum.
Speaker 2 (11:26):
Well, you've talked about your professional background. It always fascinates
me to learn how people have grown into their roles
not only through their professional lives, but also their personal
lives and their upbringing. So tell us about your family.
Was your family did you go to museums on weekends
and you know, were you introduced to art and history
(11:47):
and museums by your family or is that something that
you grew an interest on your own.
Speaker 3 (11:52):
Now I think that you know, museums, I think were
again at the core of my identity. Both my parents
are lawyers, and I have an older sister who is
not to admittedly say that she is not artistic. I
used to draw the covers for her book reports, even
though she's four older, four years older than I am
when I was already when I was still in like
elementary school. But I was the artistic kid in the family,
and because I was a cartoonist from around age two,
(12:15):
museums are always the go to location for my family
to bring me. As you know, allowing me to see
the world through, you know, the eyes of other artists
and to see the way the other art was created.
My dad's father, specifically my grandpa John, who was a
physician in New York City. He was an art connoisseur,
at least an amateur connoisseur. So every time he and
I got together, as opposed to say, like going to
(12:35):
movies or going to the playground, he and I would
go to all of the city's museums. So I really
I owe credit, of course to my parents, but especially
also to my grandfather for instilling in me what I
didn't know was art history at the time, or enjoyment
of art history. So that was really, you forming the
core of who I was. I was a cartoonist, was
how I identified, probably through the time when I was eighteen.
(12:55):
But along the way, I was also in a museum enthusiast,
such that again, you know, when I was a tween
or early teen, my mom said, Alex's dream would be
one day to be you know, the director of the
met She threw out there, and so you know, I
started to work at museums or intern at museums. You know,
through the course of my late high school years and
my college years, and at sixteen I was a high
school aprentice at the Met, which was basically my absolute
(13:17):
dream come true. It was the most incredible experience, and
I can look back and say it was the seminal
experience of my life. And then in college I worked
at city museums as well, back at the Whitney Museum
in college and back again at the Met, and then
in graduate school I went back to the Whitney Museum
during grad school. And then I got in the classroom,
and the classroom was the most natural thing for me.
And I was inherently a pretty shy kid. I am
(13:37):
socially more introverted than I am extroverted. But getting out
in the classroom and you know, realizing that, you know,
meeting all of my knowledge base as an art historian
allowed me really to grow as a classroom professor, a speaker,
a communicator. And I think all that, per your question,
you know, led up to being what I believe is
a strong museum leader, someone who you really loves art
(13:59):
from my earliest memories, but also loves the idea of
making other people love art. I always said, as a professor,
I was teaching to the most skeptical student in the classroom,
the kid who comes in and says, I know nothing
about art, nothing about art history. And my goal at
the end of that term, just like my goal is
with everybody who walks into a museum, either you know,
excitedly or begrudgingly, is to make sure that they love
art or at least appreciate the value of art at
(14:21):
the end of their experience.
Speaker 2 (14:23):
Aside from your very experience that we just learned about,
you know, professionally, what makes your leadership unique from others
in your field?
Speaker 3 (14:31):
Do you think it's a great question. I mean, it's
always hard to step outside yourself and evaluate what makes
you a good or bad or poor leader. I believe
I'm a really good leader just in the fact that
you know, I approach this from a really genuine manner.
You know, nobody's in the museum business for the remuneration
by any means. But also, my love for museums is
(14:52):
as pure as it comes. It's very hard to disguise
my passion for this, and my passion bleeds into every
single action I take, and I think about museums constantly.
You know, I am my father, I have a two
year old son. And now of course family life occupies
a lot of my brain as well. And you know,
and I love my minister Schnauzer and I think about
him and how he's doing all the time. But in
my professional world, you know, even when I wake up
(15:14):
in the middle of the night, I'm always thinking about
how do we better our museums or how do we
better specifically the Gibbs Museum experience. And so it's the
constant in my mind, and it is not for my
own self satisfaction. It's really to make sure that what
my team is doing seems worthwhile and that what they're
working toward is a collective goal. And I just want museums.
(15:35):
I mean, maybe naively, I really want everyone to really
love every museum they go to and say, wow, this
is so cool, and that's the museum geek in me
as a kid. But I'm really driven by that idea
that everybody can and should love museums. And I know
that not everybody will or not that everyone does, but
I'm driven by that in a way that I think
(15:55):
I'm sure many others share, but it really goes down
to the core of who I am. I can't express
how much museums mean to me. It means the little
kid in me, and then I actually get to be
the president and CEO of the Art Museum of Charleston
is something that I continue to pinch myself about today
because the little kid in me probably never would have
imagined this day would have arrived. And so that's what
(16:18):
really drives me again, you know, the full blown, pure
love of museums, and that is factored into every single
decision I make, or conversation I have, or hope for
the future of the Gibbs goes back to the core
of just who I've been as long as I can remember.
Speaker 2 (16:36):
I think you've probably touched on this already, But what's
the single philosophy that drives you each day.
Speaker 3 (16:43):
I'm doing the best, doing the best I can, and
making sure that other people get the ability to shine
and thrive. You know, I am someone who places probably
the greatest value on truth. I am someone who stands
by being truthful, tactful and truthful and candid, but also
you knowing what to say and when to say it.
(17:04):
But also I value that in others and so I'm
very open to ideas. I love out of the box thinking.
My staff knows that that I came in saying bring
me your ideas. Rarely, well, I reject them. I'm also
someone who has enough obsessiveness that I really think about
things all the way through to the end result. I
really do think about what the end game is. I think, well,
(17:25):
if we do this, and we do this, what is
the end result? What are the different paths that could
happen here? What is the worst case scenario? What's the
best case scenario. So I don't act rashly, but I
give a lot of thought about the rationality and the
realism of the way that we make choices and we
design programs and run exhibitions, and so I really do
think that, you know, going back to the world of
(17:50):
museums that I know, I think that that's what's really
you know, making me a CEO who loves going into
do my job every single day with the team.
Speaker 2 (18:00):
I think mentorship is so important and not everybody is
lucky enough to have a mentor. Do you have a
mentor or somebody that was a huge influence on your leadership.
Speaker 3 (18:10):
That's a great question. Yeah, I mean, actually, so you know,
when I arrived at my previous institution, I was at
Florida Southern College for eleven years. I moved from New
York City there to Florida to become an assistant professor
of our history back then not even with the museum
on the horizon. And about two years into my time
at Florida Southern, the president of Florida Southern, doctor and
(18:32):
her presenting an idea to me about what if we
were to affiliate the city museum, the then Polk Museum
of Art. With you, Florida Southern College. My jaw drop
because it's like my childhood dreams come true, because I
love to take students to museums and be able to
be involved in a museum and have this all come
together magically would be incredible. And then, you know, over
the next eight years, I became curator of the museum
(18:55):
while holding onto all of my academic duties, and then
eventually executive director and chief curator of the museum. And
that was all under the mentorship of doctor Kerr. She
was my director report, so I reported directly to the
president of the college, and I truly do owe her
so much about my style of leadership when I learned
from her about you know, making strong decisions but also
listening to others and respecting the expertise of other people,
(19:17):
you know, when it comes to fundraising and development and relations.
I really do look back, and I thank doctor Kurr
so much for that. She retired from Florida Southern Back
in August of twenty twenty four, and so I remained
for one more year after she left the school, and
then moved to Charleston in this past year. But I
really do credit professionally, and most recently, doctor Kurr with
(19:39):
a lot of what she has a mentored for me
and what she has meant to me to get me
to this point in my career. Certainly I owe that
to many, many people. But doctor Kurr comes to mind.
Speaker 2 (19:47):
Well quickly before we go, I wanted to ask you
about well. I was going to frame it as young people,
but I suppose it could be somebody of any age.
If they don't have any experience with museums and their
interests in museums and they want to pursue that, either
as a hobby or as a career, what do you
suggest they do are the what are some of the
(20:08):
first steps you suggest they take.
Speaker 3 (20:10):
Oh, it's a great question. I love this. I mean again.
You know, I led so many years being in art
history and museum studies professor. It's one of the great
fields of the world. And you know, whether it's an
art museum or a science museum or a natural history museum,
there are so many museums across this country and across
the globe that would love to have anybody who's enthusiastic
about the field. And you don't have to be an
(20:30):
art historian, you don't have to be a natural scientist
to work in the world of museums. You know, it's
a business, and you know, you know, I'm a CEO
of a nonprofit business that happens to grapple with the
art world. We have people in finance, and we have
people in events, and people in development and people in education,
and so anybody who is in any field really confine
their place in the world of museums. And I think
(20:50):
that what they should do is think about, kind of
where does your passion lie. I mean, if your passion
lies with art and art history, you know, make that
your life. If that's something it's possible to do, if
you have the support of your family or the means
to do so, or the ability to say this is
really how I want to dedicate my life. I say
everybody should go for it. Figure out kind of what
you love about museums, What fields do you like there,
(21:11):
what areas of it excite you. Also, you know, reach
out to others in the field. I can't say this
for sure for everybody, but I know personally, if anybody
reaches out to me for any sort of advice about
you know, what is it like to be a museum
CEO or a museum director, what do curators do? It's
you know, my life was driven by, you know, helping
to grow the next generation of museum professionals. And you know,
(21:32):
while I'm not in the classrooms specifically now, I would
welcome anybody to reach out anytime. You know, parents or
students who are you coming up through the field, or
youngsters who are thinking about it. I welcome that because
it's an exciting world. But also spend time in museums,
take art history classes, take art classes if it's the
art world. Again, if you're like in the college level,
it doesn't hurt to take nonprofit courses or business courses.
(21:54):
But really, you know, spending time in museums and trying
to get an internship. If that's possible, if you are
capable of doing that, it could be a really game
changing moment, because gaining insight and longer term exposure to
the museum world can either really secure that you are
fascinated by this world, or it can secure kind of
what facets of that world you're interested in. You know,
(22:16):
I think again, I go back to my mom knowing
that I was kind of always destined to do this,
which is pretty amazing. You know, thirty years ago she
predicted this, and you may know what you want to do.
I took a a somewhat winding path to return to
what was kind of expected of me by many people.
But we all can reformulate our lives, we can discover
things later on, and museums are always going to be
(22:36):
available to anyone who wants to be able to enter
the field. It is an exciting field, and again, personally,
I welcome anyone to reach out just for any discussion
of it. I think there's nothing I'm more excited about
than talking about the museum profession and the value of
everything that we and you know, the team specifically here
the Gibbs does every day.
Speaker 2 (22:52):
Yeah, I think that's great. Advice and if somebody would
like to become a member of the Gibbs Museum, you
can go to Gibbs GiB Bbesmuseum dot org and find
out more on how you can become a member and
take a part and take a part in history.
Speaker 3 (23:08):
Absolutely and we would welcome that and please just come
visit us. You know, we are a really wonderful aspect
of the cultural life of Charleston, and I promise everybody
a really great time. And we have big, big moves ahead.
We're about to undergo a major eight thousand square foot
expansion and so the time is now to you know,
re meet the Gibbs, or meet the Gibbs for the
first time, and then to come visit us. You know,
(23:29):
we'll really have a really transformed presence in early twenty
twenty seven.
Speaker 2 (23:32):
Alex who's been a pleasure. H Alexander Rich, CEO of
the Gibbs Museum of Art, Thank you so much for
your time today.
Speaker 3 (23:39):
Thank you so much for having me. I appreciate it.
Speaker 1 (23:41):
You've been listening to Iheartradios CEOs you should know, heard
every Tuesday and Saturday morning right here on this iHeartRadio station.
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