Paul Mellon Centre — Annual Repor t 2022–2023
Introduction
Since its foundation in 1970, the Paul Mellon Centre for Studies in British Art has had five directors, and this financial year saw the departure of Mark Hallett, after almost eleven years leading the organisation. Mark’s tenure as director was one of innovation and expansion, seeing the organisation grow from a team of twelve to thirty-eight members who support the Centre’s work to enhance and expand the field of British art studies. I have great pleasure in submitting the fifty-third Annual Report of the Paul Mellon Centre and take this opportunity to thank Mark for his incredible service, hard work and vision that has shaped new directions for our work and that of the field more broadly. Mark takes up the role of Märit Rausing Director of the Courtauld Institute of Art in London, and all who are connected with the PMC, the Yale Center for British Art and Yale University wish him well in his new post. In the period following his departure, I moved from the position of Deputy Director to that of Acting Director, and now have the tremendous honour of serving as the Centre’s sixth Director. This year can be characterised as one of change for the PMC, not only at leadership level but across the team. We have welcomed a large number of new employees and created several new roles. Indicative of the Centre’s ambitions to provide world-class research services and facilities, and as a result of a strategic review of the Centre in the previous year, which highlighted several staffing gaps, we have been extremely fortunate to be able to introduce new jobs and revise some more established ones. This ensures that the Centre is operationally robust and invigorated by new ideas, experiences and energies. We bid farewell to Nermin Abdulla after twelve years at the Centre. From arriving to work on reception, Nermin developed the Centre’s Learning Programme. At the core of this was her work on the Yale in London programme, which over time grew to encompass a broad remit including the Write on Art Prize; the Plan, Prepare, Provide scheme; and the establishment of the Public Lecture (now Public Event) Series. Rachel Prosser joined us from the UK government’s Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport as our new Learning Programme Manager. She is supported by Esme Boggis in the new role of Learning Programme Coordinator. The Archives & Library team has been joined by a new Assistant Librarian, Gaetano Ardito, who was previously
British Art Network Curatorial Forum, October 2022, New Haven
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