The Trump administration’s attacks on art institutions could complicate the search for a candidate to fill a high-profile opening at the Hirshhorn Museum.
The Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, one of a constellation of museums under the Smithsonian Institution, has a vacancy after its current director announced she would step down for a leadership role at New York City’s Guggenheim Museum. But several sources acquainted with the museum world said that as the Hirshhorn looks for its next leader, the recent attacks by the Trump administration on art institutions could frighten away candidates.
“There are a lot of open director positions at SI, that’s the biggest concern,” an employee at another Smithsonian museum told NOTUS, pointing to director openings at the National Portrait Gallery and the National Museum of African American History and Culture, among others. “Historically people want to be directors, but it’s a scary time to be working with the federal government.”