BAM And Brooklyn Museum Leaders To Retire This Year

Among the many changes that 2015 will bring is a changing of the guard at two of Brooklyn’s premier arts institutions: the Brooklyn Academy of Music (BAM) and the Brooklyn Museum.

BAM President Karen Brooks Hopkins will be retiring in June after 35 years at the institution — 10 as president — which includes a sprawling collection of performance spaces in Fort Greene.

As reported in Crain’s, Hopkins explained that she isn’t sure what her next step will be, but will keep working in some capacity and that she hopes for “less frenetic, more flexible” life.

“I’ve been working tirelessly for 35 years,” said the 63-year-old. “I’d like some personal time, some creative time.”

Hopkins’ impending departure was announced last year by the New York Times, when she described how much faith she has in BAM:

“I’ve always said, BAM is not a job, it’s a crusade,” she added. “And I’ve always had the fire in my eyes to do it. I never felt bad about asking for money for BAM because I knew we would always deliver.”

June will also see the departure of Arnold Lehman, director of the Brooklyn Museum. Lehman, 70, has served in that role since 1997.

“We can learn the technology, but it’s another thing to live it,” said Mr. Lehman. “The younger generation is steeped in it.”

[He] said he wants to go out while he’s still on top. “I would put my energy level up against any 28-year-old’s now, but I don’t know if that will be the case in five or 10 years,” Mr. Lehman said.

Whoever takes over Hopkins and Lehman’s responsibilities will be sure to have an impressive background in leading major or regional arts institutions, so we’ll likely be in good hands.

According to Danny Simmons, a BAM trustee who is on the search committee, in a statement to the Times last year:

“The people we need to reach are not in Fort Greene or Clinton Hill anymore,” Mr. Simmons said. “Now they’re out in Brownsville, East New York and Bedford-Stuyvesant. It’s important for the institution to reach out to people in lower-income neighborhoods.”

But it is still sad to see them go. Under their leadership and guidance, we’ve seen tremendous growth and consistency in the quality of programming at BAM and Brooklyn Museum, with events and festivals big and small abounding, and an increase in interaction with the community-at-large. Their presence has also drawn more arts organizations to the area, including Theatre for a New Audience, BRIC House and the Mark Morris Dance Theater, making the area a cornerstone of what is now called the Brooklyn Cultural District.

We’ll enjoy these last six months, wish them well in their next endeavors and hope that in some way, their future work continues to include Brooklyn!