Gaëtane Verna has resigned from her role as executive director of Wexner Center for the Arts effective immediately. The news was announced Wednesday in an email by Ravi V. Bellamkonda, executive vice president and provost of Ohio State. Credit: Courtesy of Ohio State
After her appointment in November 2022, Gaëtane Verna has now stepped away from her role as executive director of the Wexner Center for the Arts.
The news was announced in an email sent to the center’s employees by Ravi V. Bellamkonda, executive vice president and provost, on Wednesday.
“The Wex is well known for its outstanding staff of creative and dedicated professionals and, with your continued support, we will continue to serve the community and support artists from Ohio and across the globe during this transition and for many years to follow,” Bellamkonda said in the email.
According to the email, the change is effective immediately. The center will be under the guidance of Trevor Brown, senior vice provost for academic affairs, until an interim leader is announced.
Verna previously served as the director and artistic director of The Power Plant Contemporary Art Gallery in Toronto, Canada, as well as the executive director and chief curator at the Musée d’art de Joliette in Québec, according to her biography on the Wex’s website.
Her resignation comes after years of financial struggles for the Wex since the COVID-19 pandemic. On Oct. 24, the Columbus Dispatch reported that the center is facing a $1.1 million budget deficit in the next fiscal year. More than a dozen employees gave Verna a vote of no confidence in August.
The Dispatch reported that the center fell $2.5 million short of their projected income and employees were unsure of the center’s future under her leadership.
Under her leadership, around half of the employees have left their positions at the Wex — including seven of the 24 board members at the center.
Employees told the Dispatch they were unsure of the center’s future while under Verna’s leadership.
