Bellevue museum gets curator

By Nick Perry
Seattle Times Eastside bureau

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Michael Monroe, the former curator-in-charge at the Smithsonian American Art Museum's Renwick Gallery, which specializes in craft such as ceramics, textiles and glass work, will become chief curator and executive director of the Bellevue museum July 20.

The museum was forced to close amid a financial crisis in September, and leaders say they still need to raise $2.8 million by October to reopen.

Monroe, a Wisconsin native, served more than 20 years at the Renwick Gallery in Washington, D.C.

At an impromptu reception of about 80 people at the Bellevue museum last night, Monroe cast himself as a symbol for the museum's plight while standing on a sweeping staircase in the museum, witnesses said.

"It was kind of a graphic message. He was standing on the third step saying, 'That's where we have come,'" said Bellevue Mayor Connie Marshall. "And he was saying our journey ahead was to the top of that staircase."

"I think it's a huge catch for the museum," Marshall added. "He is the right guy at the right time, and he is going to turn a lot of heads ... His stature will demonstrate the museum is on the right track."

Employing a craft expert fits with the museum's pledge to shift the focus to crafts and design, away from the museum's earlier incarnation as an unconventional exhibitor of contemporary art.

"Craft is a vital part of our heritage and stands as testimony to the undying value of works of hand, heart and mind," Monroe said in a statement. "Bellevue Art Museum has the unique opportunity to become a regional center of national significance for craft."

Even former museum board member Gene Brandzel, who wrote a scathing resignation letter this month accusing the museum's leadership of bungling revival efforts, said Monroe is a "wonderfully qualified person."

Brandzel, a Seattle lawyer, said the museum is in need of a significant benefactor, or it could still face financial ruin.
 
But departing board President Rick Collette, who is being replaced tomorrow by board member Angela Sutter as part of a regular rotation, said the museum now has a "business model that provides structure and sustainability."

Nick Perry: 206-515-5639 or nperry@seattletimes.com