Former trustees of the Orlando Museum of Art say they were intentionally kept in the dark by museum leadership about a Jean-Michel Basquiat exhibit of questionable authenticity that led to the museum being raided by the FBI in June.
The planned “Heroes & Monsters” exhibit of never-before-seen Basquiat paintings was pitched as a coup for the museum nearly up until the moment that FBI agents were seizing the paintings. Five former trustees of the museum who removed from the board last week say that ex-board chairwoman Christina Brumback kept news of the FBI’s interest in the paintings from them.
The New York Times notes that former museum director Aaron De Groft and Brumback received a subpoena from the FBI in July 2021. They made the decision to keep the request for communications around the exhibit confidential from everyone but themselves and one financial advisor.
“Had we known when we should’ve known, the show would not have happened,” booted trustee Winifred Sharp told the Times. “I am a former judge and a lawyer, and I know the implications of being served with a subpoena: They think there’s probable cause that there’s fraud. Everyone would normally go ‘Whoa! Whoa! Whoa!’”
The ex-trustees spoke with the paper after Brumback published an op-ed in the Orlando Sentinel that seemed to indicate all members of the board knew about the subpoena for months. They spoke out, objecting to the use of the word “us” in the column.
“At that time, our then-director repeatedly assured us — through the presentation of documentary evidence — that highly qualified art experts had vetted the authenticity of the pieces in the ‘Heroes and Monsters’ exhibition,” Brumback wrote. “Our director presented us with several authentication reports, specifically one from Diego Cortez, the now-deceased man widely credited with ‘discovering’ Basquiat and who served on Basquiat’s estate’s official authentication committee. Based on this and the other reports, our director reassured us that everything was in order.”
Since the board was not informed that anything was amiss, this reassurance would not have taken place. Former board president and trustee Ted Brown said that Brumback’s secrecy on the matter was “a breach of her responsibilities.”
“The board of directors is the only entity — not the chair of the board, but the entire board — that holds the corporate franchise,” he said. “We are the responsible party for the good, the bad, the ugly, and everything in between at the museum.”
Sharp said that the ouster of several board members came right as they were about to ask Brumback to proffer her resignation. In a less-crowded meeting, Brumback stepped down from her position but remained on the board.
The secrecy and scandal seems to be at the heart of the resignation of OMA’s interim director Dr. Luder Whitlock. He resigned his post mere weeks after being brought into the position, shortly before OMA announced its trustee purge. He also spoke to the New York Times about the state of the museum.
“It’s obvious that by resigning, I was not pleased with certain things. And that’s all I can tell you,” he said.