Open letter against the dismissal of María Inés Rodríguez

Inés Rodríguez pronto será desalojada de su puesto como Directora del CAPC, Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Burdeos. En Francia, hay una penuria de directoras, presidentas y directoras de instituciones culturales, y este anuncio marca una nueva regresión en la paridad en el sorprendentemente masculino mundo del arte francés.

Estamos estupefactos por el despido anunciado de un profesional consumado que es reconocido internacionalmente por su curiosidad, la pertinencia de su programa de curaduría y la calidad de sus exposiciones.

María Inés Rodríguez trajo nuevas y frescas energías al CAPC, con retrospectivas dedicadas a Beatriz González, Alejandro Jodorowsky, Judy Chicago y Franz Erhard Walther, ganadora del León de Oro en la 57ª Bienal de Venecia, 2017. Ha destacado la colección de maneras sin precedentes y lo ha hecho permanentemente visible para el público. Desde que fue contratada en 2013, se ha beneficiado del apoyo constante de los "Amigos del CAPC" y ha logrado desarrollar asociaciones y patrocinios, una característica estándar del rol de los directores de museos ahora que el financiamiento público se está volviendo tan raro.

Nos preocupan las recientes declaraciones de Fabien Robert, teniente de alcalde de Cultura y Patrimonio de Burdeos. En un artículo publicado en Rue 89 Bordeaux, el teniente de alcalde cuestiona abiertamente si el arte contemporáneo todavía existe y afirma que le gustaría que el CAPC se convierta en un "escaparate" de publicidad para la ciudad. Le dijo a Libération que 'el CAPC ha sido un tema de interés', y que ha estado visitando el sitio durante meses, para hacer 'compras' y 'comparaciones' para definir orientaciones '.

On 8 March, International Women's Day, we learned through the press that María Inés Rodríguez will soon be evicted from her post as Director of the CAPC, Museum of Contemporary Art of Bordeaux. In France, there is a penury of female directors, presidents, and heads of cultural institutions and this announcement marks a further regression in parity in the strikingly masculine French art world.

We are stupefied by the announced dismissal of a consummate professional who is internationally renowned for her curiosity, the pertinence of her curatorial programme, and the quality of her exhibitions.

María Inés Rodríguez brought fresh, new energy to the CAPC, with retrospectives devoted to Beatriz Gonzalez, Alejandro Jodorowsky, Judy Chicago and Franz Erhard Walther, winner of the Golden Lion at the 57th Venice Biennale, 2017. She has highlighted the collection in unprecedented ways and has made it permanently visible to the public. Since she was hired in 2013, she has benefited from the ongoing support of the 'Friends of the CAPC' and succeeded in developing partnerships and sponsorships, a standard feature of the role of museum directors now that public financing is becoming so rare.

We are troubled by recent statements made by Fabien Robert, Bordeaux's Deputy Mayor for Culture and Heritage. In an article published in Rue 89 Bordeaux the Deputy Mayor questions openly 'whether contemporary art still exists' and asserts he would like to see the CAPC become a publicity 'showcase' for the city. He told Libération that 'the CAPC has been a subject of interest', and that he's 'been visiting the site for months, to do 'sourcing' and 'benchmarking' in order to define orientations.'

We are arts professionals, we love museums and their publics. For us, transmitting the joy and intelligence of art works to the greatest number of people is a major concern. We are revolted to see that over the years, from one director to another, the same problems occur: constant pressure against the museum leadership, which is caught in the vice of municipal management, a lack of institutional support, and the weakening of financial stability. The CAPC has a prestigious history that matters in the international landscape. It would be a dramatic error to let shortsighted political motivations determine its end-point.

Through this letter, we assert our attachment to the CAPC and to the programme of its current director. We call upon the French Minister of Culture, Françoise Nyssen, to respond to the situation in Bordeaux, where the survival of contemporary art appears to be at stake. 

Nick Aikens, Curator, Van Abbemuseum, Eindhoven
Magalí Arriola, Curator, Kadist Foundation, San Francisco
Xabier Arakistain, Independent Curator, Bilbao
Leonor Antunes, Artist
Virginie Bobin, Independent Curator, Paris
Christian Boltanski, Artist
Marie-Laure Bernadac, Independent Curator, Paris
Etienne Bernard, Director Passerelle Centre d'art contemporain, Brest
Lionel Bovier, Director Mamco, Genève
Caroline Bourgeois, Curator, Collection Pinault, Paris
Aurore Claverie, Artistic Director La Métive
Anne Davidian, Independent Curator
Florence Derieux, Director of Exhibitions, Hauser & Wirth, New York
Patricia Falguières, Professor, École des Hautes Études en Sciences Sociales, Paris
Xavier Franceschi, Director FRAC Île-de-France
Elena Filipovic, Director, Kunsthalle Basel
Juan Gaitan, Director Museo Tamayo, Mexico
Katya García-Antón, Director, OCA, Oslo
Marta Gili, Director, Jeu de Paume, Paris
Dominique Gonzalez-Foerster, Artist, Paris
Catherine Grenier, Director, Fondation Alberto et Annette Giacometti, Paris
Hou Hanru, Artistic Director, MAXXI National Museum of the 21st Century Arts, Rome
Barbara Hernandez, Director, Soma, Mexico
Sofía Hernandez Chong Cuy, Director, Witte de With, Rotterdam
Beatrice Josse, Director of Le Magasin, National Center for Contemporary Art, Grenoble
Evelyne Jouanno, Director Ars Citizen, San Francisco
Emma Lavigne, Director Centre Pompidou-Metz
Elisabeth Lebovici, Art Critic, Paris
Pablo Leon de la Barra, Curator, Latin America, Solomon R Guggenheim Museum and Foundation, New York
Claire Le Restif, Director du Centre d'art contemporain d'Ivry-le Crédac
Eric Mangion, Directeur du Centre d'art de la Villa Arson, Nice
Stéphanie Moisdon, Co-Director, Consortium Contemporary Art Center Dijon and head of the Master Arts Visuels at l'Ecole Cantonale d'art de Lausanne (ECAL)
Claire Moulène, Curator, Palais de Tokyo, Paris
Ramiro Martinez, Director, Museo Ampara, Puebla
Olivier Michelon, Curator
Frances Morris, Director, Tate Modern, London
Hans-Ulrich Obrist, Director Serpentine Galleries, London
Chiara Parisi, Curator Villa Medici, Rome
Sandra Patron, Director Musée régional d'art contemporain Occitanie/Pyrénées-Méditerranée
Adriano Pedrosa, Artistic Director, MASP, Museu de Arte, São Paulo
Agustin Pérez Rubio, MALBA Artistic Director, Buenos Aires, Argentina.
Jean Marc Prévost, Director Carré d'Art, Musée d'art contemporain de Nîmes
François Quintin, Deputy Director, Lafayette Anticipations, Paris
Valentin Rodriguez, Director of Collections, Les Abattoirs, Toulouse
Ute Meta Bauer, Director, NTU Centre for Contemporary Art Singapore
Nataša Petrešin-Bachelez, Independent Curator, Paris
Krist Gruijthuijsen, Director, Kunst-Werke, Berlin
Octavio Zaya, Art Critic and Independent Curator, New York
Vivian Sky Rehberg, Contributing Editor frieze and director Master Fine Art, Zwart Institute, Rotterdam
Annabelle Teneze, Director, Les Abattoirs, Toulouse
Sandra Terdjman, Co-Director, Council, Paris
Giovanna Zapperi, Professor, Tours University