Dear Friends:
As I write this letter in July 2023, the Yale Center for British Art is enveloped in scaffolding and fencing, making it clear to passersby that the latest phase of our building conservation plan is underway. We closed the museum to the public in late February so that we could replace the roof and original skylights, upgrade the gallery lighting system, and make other improvements to infrastructure and for sustainability. As we approach the museum’s fiftieth anniversary in 2027, my colleagues and I feel a renewed sense of responsibility to preserve our landmark building and safeguard our collections for generations to come.
The past year has been one of the busiest and most fruitful in the museum’s history. In addition to meticulously planning and preparing for the renovations, we welcomed more than 43,000 visitors during the eight months that the museum was open; presented major exhibitions and focused installations; loaned objects to museums and institutions in Europe and across the United States; added incredible new works to our collection; hosted conversations, gallery talks, lectures, symposia, tours, and workshops; and shared our resources with families, scholars, students, and visitors from all over the world.
After more than two years in which nearly all of our programming had to take place online, it was a delight to welcome artists and writers to the museum in person. In September, I had the pleasure of moderating a discussion between writer Elizabeth Alexander (Yale BA 1984) and artists Jordan Casteel (Yale MFA 2014) and Glenn Ligon. Other programs that filled our Lecture Hall to capacity included conversations with architect Peter Zumthor, who spoke with Billie Tsien (Yale BA 1971) and Tod Williams, and with painter Jenny Saville. Poet Bob Holman shared his new poems inspired by the work of Bridget Riley with a rapt audience in our galleries. Pulitzer Prize–winning critic Hilton Als spoke about The Hilton Als Series: Njideka Akunyili Crosby, the third and final exhibition in a series he curated for the YCBA. The show later traveled to the Huntington Library, Art Museum, and Botanical Gardens in San Marino, California, where Akunyili Crosby (Yale MFA 2011) joined us at a festive reception we hosted for local alumni, collectors, and friends.
Our senior curatorial team grew this year with the appointments of Lucinda Lax as Curator of Paintings and Sculpture and Timothy Young as Curator of Rare Books and Manuscripts. Lucinda joined us in January 2023. She is already envisioning a new installation of our permanent collection, which will go on view when the museum reopens in fall 2024. Tim was appointed in spring 2023 and will join us at the start of the next fiscal year; we look forward to his fresh approach to engaging all our audiences with our collection of rare books and manuscripts.
Along with our colleagues from other Yale libraries and museums, we were thrilled to celebrate the launch of LUX. This new discovery platform allows students, researchers, and curious members of the public to find and connect objects across Yale’s cultural heritage collections. More than 128,000 records from the YCBA’s online catalog have already been added. I encourage you to explore this fascinating tool at lux.collections.yale.edu.
Our temporary closure has brought new opportunities for collaboration with our neighbors at Yale, in New Haven, and across the country. Partnerships with the Yale University Art Gallery and SITE Santa Fe are highlighted in this report. Visit our website for details of an exciting collaboration with the Yale School of Architecture and other upcoming events. We resumed our Visiting Scholars program with renewed energy and expanded scope, offering research residency awards to artists as well as academics. Our inaugural resident artist, Amie Siegel, visited the museum in the winter to photograph paintings and works on paper by George Stubbs. Siegel’s new work inspired by Stubbs will be featured in a future exhibition.
At the start of the academic year, we reshaped the museum’s Advisory Committee to include alumni, artists, and art professionals in addition to New Haven community members and Yale colleagues. I am grateful for the dedication, guidance, and insight of committee members past and present.
Special congratulations are due to committee member and colleague Mark Hallett, who recently completed more than a decade of visionary leadership as Director of the Paul Mellon Centre for Studies in British Art (PMC), our partner institution in London. I look forward to seeing all that he achieves in his new role as the Märit Rausing Director of the Courtauld Institute of Art.
Earlier this year, my colleagues and I mourned the loss of Thomas (Tom) Gallagher, former security officer; Duncan Robinson, former director of the museum; and Frederick (Ted) A. Terry, who was a trusted counselor to Paul Mellon and co-executor of his estate. As we write the next chapter in the history of the YCBA, we remember their dedication to the museum and Mr. Mellon’s legacy with deep gratitude.
I am thankful for the legacy of our founder as well as the other individuals and organizations whose support made possible the activities, initiatives, and programs outlined in this report. Their generosity, which sustained us through the challenges of the pandemic, will carry us into a new period of transformation.
—Courtney J. Martin, Paul Mellon Director, Yale Center for British Art
