Strike closes Centre Pompidou for 11th consecutive day

Our daily round-up of news from the art world

Strike at Centre Pompidou continues | This morning, Paris’s Centre Pompidou announced that it would remain closed due to industrial action for the 11th successive day. On Monday 27 April, security staff declared a strike in protest at new laws intended to reform the recruitment process of employees, which staff claim would reduce their salaries by 20–30 per cent (French language article). The action is the first strike to take place at the museum since 2006, and has considerably disrupted the Pompidou’s 40th anniversary celebrations. The lost revenue incurred by the strike may hit the state-funded museum hard.

Patrick Sears to step down as director of Rubin Museum | Patrick Sears, the executive director of New York’s Rubin Museum of Art, has announced that he is to retire at the end of the year. Sears has been at the museum since its opening in 2004, serving as chief operating officer for six years before being appointed director. ‘Patrick’s leadership, commitment, and vision have unlocked the potential for the Rubin Museum’s growth’, said board president Bob Baylis. ‘[…] he will leave behind both tremendous groundwork and a legacy for the next director to build upon.’

More than €150,000 worth of jewels stolen from Art Paris fair | Between €150,000–€200,000 worth of jewels have been stolen from exhibitors at this year’s edition of Art Paris, reports L’Express (French language article). The thefts allegedly took place on Sunday evening, just as the fair’s booths were being dismantled. Paris police told AFP that one man distracted a saleswoman at one of the stands while another grabbed a suitcase full of jewellery. The identity of the exhibitor has not been revealed.

Victoria Miro announces new gallery in Venice | London gallerist Victoria Miro has announced that she is to open a space in Venice, coinciding with the opening of this year’s Biennale. Housed in a 17th-century building in the city’s San Marco district, the new gallery will complement her existing spaces in Mayfair and east London, and will open to the public on 10 May with an exhibition by Chris Ofili.

Roanne Dods (1966–2017) | Roanne Dods, the first director of the Jerwood Charitable Foundation, has died at the age of 51. Born in Peru to Scottish parents, Dods spent her youth in Italy and Scotland before training as a dancer in London. In 1998, she became the launch director of the Jerwood Charitable Foundation, a role she held for 11 years. Dods went on to become vice chair of the Scottish Ballet, and founding director of both Mission Models Money and the Work Room. ‘Roanne embodied a style of leadership which was feminine, courageous, empowering, generous, open, collaborative, informed, intuitive and full of humility,’ wrote her friend Janet Archer in a tribute for Creative Scotland.