A view of the Southern Alberta Art Gallery entrance
The board of directors of the Southern Alberta Art Gallery announced today that Marilyn Smith, executive director, will retire from the gallery in mid-July. Succeeding Smith is Ryan Doherty, who has been a curator at the gallery since 2008 and will take on the position of director/curator on July 13.
In another organizational shift, Danielle Tait, currently director of development & communications, will become associate director overseeing the administrative functions of the gallery and will be in charge of finance and fund development.
Doherty completed his bachelor’s at the University of Lethbridge in 1997 and his master’s at the Centre for Curatorial Studies at Bard College in 2007. Recently he served as a juror for the 2011 and 2012 Sobey Art Award and will be a juror in the upcoming 2013 RBC Canadian Painting Competition. Shows curated of late include solo exhibitions of Sobey finalists such as Eleanor King, Raphaëlle de Groot and Jason de Haan.
During her tenure, Smith has overseen a renovation and expansion of the SAAG which launched in 2010, among other projects. In a release, board president Johnna Kubik stated that “Marilyn has played a pivotal role in the growth and development of SAAG. Her legacy is the gallery’s strong business foundation, developed through various of her initiatives which included the gallery branding project, strategic planning, and creation of the fund development position to name a few. Under her guidance SAAG has expanded its audience, sponsorships, and reputation.”
Smith also stated, “I have every faith that the new SAAG team lead by Ryan will take the gallery forward with a continued dedication and enthusiasm for realizing our mandate through creative and innovative means that reflect the perspectives of the world around us.”
