ORLANDO, Fla. -- On a recent visit to Orlando Museum of Art, the gallery where purported Jean-Michel Basquiat paintings once hung, was dark. It’s a rare quiet spot amid the hustle and bustle of Orlando’s vibrant art scene — with Snap! opening a new show celebrating Florida photographers, the new Gallery 32789 coming to Winter Park next month, the Downtown Arts District’s “Art After Dark” soiree happening this weekend, and expansion plans underway for not one but two leading institutions: the Mennello Museum of American Art and Rollins Museum of Art.
With all the good news, it’s easy to view as an anomaly the scandal that engulfed Orlando Museum of Art after the FBI seized paintings presented as authentic Basquiats as part of a long-term investigation into the works.
But the angry Facebook comments, calls for an apology from museum leadership, a public mural that mocks the situation, even a resignation from a longtime OMA volunteer — all are signs of the cracks in the trust that exists between the museum and the community.
‘A place of authority’
Trust is a fundamental — and essential — part of the museum-public relationship, says Ena Heller, director of the Rollins Museum of Art in Winter Park. And study after study backs her up.
“Museums were built and survived because they were acknowledged, accepted and seen as a place of authority,” Heller said. “When people come in the door they know they are seeing the real deal. That is the trust that was eroded by what happened.”
A 2021 study by the national American Alliance of Museums found that museums ranked second only to family and friends as highly trustworthy — scoring significantly higher in a survey than news organizations, the government and corporations.
Time will tell whether the ill-fated exhibition at Orlando Museum of Art, which was put on view months after museum leadership learned the FBI was investigating the works, will damage the perception of museums here in the long term.
Other museum leaders point out that one blot on Orlando’s art scene, no matter how high-profile, does not accurately reflect on the thorough work being done across Central Florida institutions.
“By definition we’re researchers,” said Shannon Fitzgerald, director of the city-owned Mennello Museum. “That’s where we start. That’s the rewarding part. We really want to make sure our shows have an educational component.”
Professional affiliations, such as the American Alliance for Museums, can help with research. Orlando Museum of Art had last been accredited by the alliance in 2011. The alliance wouldn’t confirm whether that accreditation, usually for a 10-year term, is still in effect.
“We are monitoring the situation but it is our policy not to speak to the specific circumstances of any particular museum, or an active FBI investigation,” an alliance spokesperson wrote in an email. The museum did not comment for this article, but published lists of accreditations for 2020, 2021 and 2022 made no mention of OMA.
Due diligence
Doing due diligence is essential to maintaining trust, Fitzgerald said. The Mennello has a history of donations, going back to its original collection of Earl Cunningham paintings obtained by Marilyn Mennello.
“That’s how this museum was built,” said Fitzgerald, pointing out that Mennello actively participated in determining the value of the Cunninghams.
“She knew what she saw,” Fitzgerald said, “then she went to the experts and they saw it.”
Today, if someone wants to donate a piece of art, they have to do their homework first.
“They have to have the documents, they have to get an appraisal,” Fitzgerald said.
Like the public, museum leaders have been following the events at OMA — with an eye on their own procedures.
“We’re having conversations, of course,” Fitzgerald said.
“We’ve really been thinking internally about authentic stories,” said Danielle Thomas, executive director of the Art & History Museums — Maitland.
For an upcoming exhibition on Florida’s native tribes, the museum first consulted a Seminole State College academic expert — and then went a step further.
“We have all the texts being reviewed by the Ah-Tah-Thi-Ki Museum,” the official museum of the Seminole nation located on the Big Cypress Indian Reservation in South Florida, said Thomas. “We’re really working closely with experts on the subject matter.”
‘Back to the mission’
Another way museums preserve trust is by staying true to their values.
“Everything goes back to the mission — does this serve the mission?” Fitzgerald said.
The internal work between those who create the art and those who display it also plays a part.
“That curator-artist relationship is crucial,” Thomas said. “That’s where building that trust happens.”
And staff expertise also can prevent potential problems.
“I think listening to your staff, creating an environment where everyone can share their feedback — that’s how institutions can check themselves,” Thomas said. “It takes a commitment to listening to everyone without ego. Is management confident enough to listen to difficult feedback. Look at your checks and balances for any blind spots you might have.”
Working with living artists, featured in many of the A&H’s exhibits, does eliminate problems of origin.
“We certainly have it easier,” Thomas said. “There’s no question of provenance.”
‘Larger than one museum’
As a museum becomes an expert on a specific subject, it enjoys a greater level of trust.
The Mennello is the expert on Cunningham, as the Morse Museum in Winter Park is the worldwide authority on glass artist Louis Comfort Tiffany, the Albin Polasek Museum is the expert on the sculptor for which it is named, and the Art & History Museums is the go-to source for information on J. André Smith, who founded its Maitland Art Center.
But Heller worries that expertise won’t necessarily stop the damage caused by the Orlando Museum of Art scandal.
“What happened at OMA is hurting all of us,” she said. “When a museum’s reputation suffers, by extension all museums’ reputations suffer. It is larger than one museum.”
Repairing damage
There are, of course, steps that can restore trust — whether in a romantic relationship or a business one.
Psychology Today lists seven ways to repair a damaged reputation — including listening to anger, empathizing with those who are hurt, taking steps to prevent a recurrence of the damaging incident, taking responsibility, apologizing and showing trustworthiness through transparent communication.
Critics of the Orlando Museum of Art’s response to the discredited exhibit point out that, as far as the public knows, none of those steps has happened.
OMA hired Luder Whitlock as interim executive director in July after dismissing Aaron De Groft, who had championed the purported Basquiat works. Whitlock’s first public message, sent in a mass email, didn’t address that situation.
Instead, the brief message made vague statements such as “The difficulties of the past appear to be behind us, and we have returned to our mission” and “Now, our future looks healthy again.”
The message also acknowledged the board of directors has “committed to strengthening all aspects of governance” without providing any detail.
‘Take responsibility’
For Heller, it wasn’t enough. She believes the institution owes the community an apology.
“You have to take responsibility for having failed the public trust,” she said, “because otherwise they are not going to give it to you again.”
Longtime Orlando Museum of Art volunteer Matt Giles agrees. An officer with OMA’s Acquisition Trust, he resigned his position “with a heavy heart.”
“Truly repairing the damage you all have collectively caused the museum requires sincere recognition of all the issues, accountability for errors in judgment and leadership, and deep empathy for the reckless mishandling of our community’s trust,” he wrote in his resignation letter, provided to the Orlando Sentinel. “OMA is in dire need of new energy, new perspectives, and above all, integrity that our community can believe in. Announce this to the community. Earn back our trust.”
For weeks, requests for comment from OMA have been referred to Tucker Hall, a crisis-management public-relations firm in Tampa. The firm has not responded to multiple emails from the Orlando Sentinel.
‘This needs to be addressed’
Heller thinks remaining silent and playing a waiting game is a mistake.
“This is not an issue that can go away with time; this needs to be addressed,” she said. “My worry is that this erosion of public trust will continue. More and more people in the community will say that museum, and all museums, are not intrinsically trustworthy.”
She already has seen a change in public perception.
“I hear people in the community being angry, I hear people being hurt,” she said. “I think it’s the silence that’s killing everybody. The crisis won’t be over until it’s handled.”
As the new arts season begins this fall, Heller and other museum directors hope the public don’t lose faith and remember all the good local institutions do.
“We’ve never done anything to have the public question us,” Heller said.
“I think there is public accountability and trust, based on our work,” said Fitzgerald, adding museum professionals are an intrinsic part of the community. “We live in Orlando, and we love Orlando.”
Thomas also expressed hope that the public would see a bigger picture.
“It’s always difficult to see other organizations go through challenging situations,” Thomas said. “The best that individual organizations can do in response is look at our own internal procedures and focus on our own good work. Hopefully that will speak louder to the public and maintain that trust.”
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