COVID-19 closed SLO Museum of Art — but it has a new director with big, colorful plans
When Leann Standish moved to the Central Coast, her first stop was the San Luis Obispo Museum of Art.
“When I first got here, the first thing I checked out was the museum,” Standish recalled. “I always thought one day I could run the museum.”
Turns out, she was right.
On Oct. 1, Standish officially became the museum’s new executive director.
She takes over the reins of the nonprofit arts organization, formerly known as the San Luis Obispo Arts Center, from interim director Ruta Saliklis, who took the top spot in 2019. That’s when longtime museum leader Karen Kile retired after 20 years.
What’s next for SLO Museum of Art?
Standish inherits the leadership of the San Luis Obispo Museum of Art at a challenging time.
A fixture in downtown San Luis Obispo since the late 1960s, the museum was expected to expand to a new $12 million, three-story building that would triple exhibition space at its 1010 Broad St. location.
In January, the museum board canceled a capital campaign that aimed to raise $15 million — $12 million for the new building and $3 million for a cash reserve to cover operating costs — effectively putting those plans hold.
About two months later, the museum closed its doors to the public due to the coronavirus pandemic.
“It’s brutal,” Standish said.
“COVID’s got us closed and we’re going to pay attention to that opportunity,” Standish said, by working to launch a mural program early next year.
“We want to do something dramatic. We want to know everybody knows where we are,” Standish said. “Right now, using the building as a canvas is the best opportunity (to do that).”
In addition to the mural program, slated to start in January 2021, the executive director said she’d like to launch online art education in local schools, expand public outreach efforts and start an artist residency program that would bring in top talent from outside the area. “I can’t think of a sexier area to spend some time creating great art,” Standish said with a laugh.
She also wants to work with the community to “create art that can stay here” on display in local businesses and public spaces.
“We’re engaging people in every way we’re allowed to do that,” Standish said.
Standish said the museum’s capital campaign and related building plans have been “put to bed” for now. “It’s not part of our short-term plan at all,” she said. “In two or three years we’ll have a really tight vision that people can wrap their heads around.”
Standish added that she’ll also “come back to the idea of becoming an accredited museum” at some point in the future.
Executive director’s background
Standish has held leadership roles at a number of arts institutions, including Perez Art Museum in Miami, the Minneapolis Institute of Arts and the Indianapolis Museum of Art, according to a news release. She started her career at the Fresno Metropolitan Museum of Art & Science, which closed in 2010.
Standish served as the executive director of the Foundation for the Performing Arts Center in San Luis Obispo for nearly four years before joining the San Luis Obispo art museum’s staff.
Standish will serve as a consultant to the foundation to “facilitate the transition to the organization’s new executive director,” the news release said. “She will also be supporting the foundation’s ambitious goals as it nears its 25th anniversary celebration next September.”
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Charles Feltman, president of the San Luis Obispo Museum of Art’s board of directors, praised Standish’s “passion for connecting people through the arts.”
“With her background we believe she will provide the leadership to help us chart the best course forward for our mission of providing and promoting diverse arts experiences,” Feltman said in the news release.
When will the downtown museum reopen after coronavirus closure?
As of Monday, San Luis Obispo County looked primed to enter its third week in the red tier of coronavirus regulations under California’s Blueprint for a Safer Economy.
Counties in the state’s COVID-19 red category are considered to have substantial, but not widespread, coronavirus cases, according to the California Department of Public Health.
That means museums, zoos and aquariums are allowed to open indoors with a maximum capacity of 25%.
According to Standish, there are no current plans to reopen the San Luis Obispo Museum of Art, which has been shuttered since March 17.
“There’s so much work (involved) in ramping up a program and getting it going for a small, small number of constituents,” Standish said, noting that “the likelihood of closing again is pretty high.”
Stamdish said she and the museum board will follow the directions of state and county public health departments.
“It’s completely up to the county. It’s completely up to Dr. (Penny) Borenstein,” the county public health officer, Standish said.
Either way, Standish said she has high hopes for the future of the San Luis Obispo art museum.
“Literally, this museum is in the best spot in downtown SLO,” she said, part of a “cultural corridor” that includes the San Luis Obispo Children’s Museum and the History Center of San Luis Obispo County. “Sitting here at the end of Mission Plaza, there’s no end to how the museum can influence the community around it.”
This story was originally published October 7, 2020 at 5:00 AM.
