The search for a new UNM Art Museum director has been narrowed down to four.
"We have four very highly qualified candidates," said David Stuart, associate provost of academic affairs and hiring officer for the position. "Each has something different to offer."
Linda Bahm has been the interim director of the museum since Peter Walch retired in 2001.
Bahm took over while the museum sorted out its mission and long-term goals, Stuart said. It also allowed the staff to conduct a national search, which they began advertising in the summer of 2003.
Bahm is one of the four candidates, along with Kathleen Howe, Marianne Lorenz and Peter Briggs.
Stuart said there are two internal candidates and two external candidates, one of whom earned a doctoral degree from UNM.
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"We are looking for a director who will continue to use the museum as a resource to connect to the art community," Stuart said. "We also want someone who will continue to offer strong work and internship opportunities for students."
The four candidates will be visiting the campus during the next couple of weeks for a long day of meetings, including a culminating meeting with the search committee and Kelvin Beliele, search coordinator and administrative assistant of the museum.
"We're looking for someone balanced in administrative procedures who has curatorial experience," Beliele said.
Each candidate has an open forum on visiting day for 45 minutes, which the public and students are invited to attend.
Bahm's forum was held Monday. She was associate director of the museum and Johnson Gallery and has been interim director for the past two-and-a-half years. She was also assistant director of the Maxwell Museum of Anthropology and administrative assistant to the dean of the College of Education. She has a master's degree in history from the College of Wooster.
Howe's forum will be held Thursday in the SUB, Fiesta rooms A & B. Howe has a master's and a doctoral degree in art history from UNM. She is the interim associate director of the museum and was previously curator of prints and photographs for the museum. She has also taught as an adjunct assistant professor in the Department of Art and Art History at UNM.
Lorenz will be at UNM on April 12 in Fiesta rooms A & B. She is the executive director of the Las Vegas Art Museum and was previously the executive director of the Yellowstone Art Museum. She has a master's degree in fine art, with an art history emphasis and earned an MBA with an emphasis in marketing.
Briggs will be here April 14 in the Bobo room of Hodgin Hall. He has a doctorate degree from UNM in art history. He is the chief curator at the University of Arizona Museum of Art and was previously the curator of collections there.
Stuart said he encouraged students to attend because they can rate each of the candidates.
