THE YEAR IN
REVIEWTHE WALTERS ART MUSEUM ANNUAL REPORT 2003 France, France, Ms.M.638, folio 23 verso, 1244–1254, The Pierpont Morgan Library, New York Dear Friends: After more than three intense years renovating and reinstalling our Centre Street Building, which con- cluded in June 2002 with the opening of our transformed 19th-century galleries, we stepped back in fiscal year 2002–2003 to refocus attention on our Charles Street Building, with its Renaissance, baroque, and rococo collections, in preparation for its complete reinstallation for a fall 2005 opening. For the Walters, as for cultural institutions nationwide, this was more generally a time of reflection and retrenchment in the wake of lingering uncertainty after the terrorist attack of 9/11, the general economic downturn, and significant loss of public funds. Nevertheless, thanks to Mellon Foundation funding, we were able to make three new mid-level curatorial hires, in the departments of ancient, medieval, and Renaissance and baroque art. Those three endowed positions will have lasting impact on the museum, as will a major addition to our galleries: in September 2002, we opened a comprehensive display of the arts of the ancient Americas, thanks to a long-term loan from the Austen-Stokes Foundation. Now, for the first time, we are able to expand on a collecting area Henry Walters entered nearly a century ago, to match our renowned ancient and medieval holdings in quality and range with more than four millennia of works from the western hemisphere. The 2002–2003 season was marked by three major exhibitions organized by the Walters, and by the continued international tour of a fourth Walters show, Desire and Devotion. In the fall, The Book of Kings, funded in part by the National Endowment for the Humanities, explored in depth one of the greatest of all medieval manuscripts, a pic- ture Bible of the 13th century in the Morgan Library, possibly made for King Louis IX of France. Then, in the late winter and spring, we mounted two exhibitions as our contribution to the city- wide celebration of St. Petersburg’s 300th anniversary, Vivat! St. Petersburg. One, The Fabergé Menagerie, was assembled from collections worldwide and went on a national tour after it closed at the Walters, whereas the other, Origins of the Russian Avant-Garde, was a collaborative project between the Walters and the State Russian Museum. The latter was favorably reviewed in the Wall Street Journal, New York Times, and Washington Post, as well as in local press. However, exhibitions were not the only changes at the Walters. After more than two decades of increas- ing leadership, including six years as board president (1994–2000) and then three as chair, Adena Testa stepped back (and up) to the status of emerita. Though we will greatly miss her, I am absolutely certain that Dena Testa will continue to be at the heart of all that the Walters is and does. During these challenging economic times, our ability to move forward with our mission “to bring art and people together,” and thereby to fulfill Henry Walter’s mandate to act “for the benefit of the public,” depends all the more on you, our supporters.
Yours sincerely,
Gary Vikan Director
2 • the walters art museum | annual report 2003 TABLE OF CONTENTS
The Year in Review