Indigenous former Remai gallery trustee says he quit over ‘control’ by councillors
A former Remai Modern art gallery board member says he left the board because meetings were dominated by two city councillors and he felt like a “token” Indigenous representative.
Dion Tootoosis said he stopped attending meetings in November because he felt the councillors who sit on the board were exerting too much control.
Tootoosis, an educator who works at the Saskatchewan Indian Institute of Technologies, said he joined the board midway through 2017, but noticed a shift when the gallery opened in October 2017.
“That’s when the conversation really changed and the energy really changed to monopolization by city council members,” Tootoosis said in an interview. “Every conversation was dominated by city council in every respect.”
The 14-member board of trustees has included two city council members dating back to the Remai Modern’s predecessor, the Mendel Art Gallery.
Councillors Cynthia Block and Mairin Loewen have served on the board since 2016. In December, city council extended their terms until 2020.
The Remai Modern operates in a city-owned building and is governed by a board appointed by city council. The independence of the board has emerged as a key issue in a major turnover in which the entire executive has left.
Tootoosis said he’s not surprised by the shakeup on the board, which was prompted when Mayor Charlie Clark informed board chair Scott Verity and secretary Alison Norlen in February that their terms would not be renewed, according to Norlen.
“This is the result of (the city councillors) monopolizing the conversation and the control issue,” Tootoosis said. “I felt like a token member, a token Indigenous member.”
Loewen responded with an emailed message on Thursday.
“We are sorry to hear that Mr. Tootoosis felt this way about his time on the board,” Loewen wrote. “We take seriously the concerns he’s raised about board diversity.”
Departing board members have hinted at interference by city hall. Clark, who served on the board before he was elected mayor, has said council and city hall are not supposed to get involved in gallery operations or programming.
He has acknowledged, however, that council directed the city administration to intervene to address workplace concerns at the fledgling gallery.
Tootoosis said board meetings became long and unproductive, largely because of the city councillors.
“The board is not supposed to assert control, but manage it,” he said. “My perspective was often left completely out.”
The construction of the new gallery was controversial from the start, and delays and rising costs added to the frustration.
Tootoosis said he hopes the new board, which is scheduled to meet for the first time on Tuesday with five new members, will be allowed to operate independently.
“Now that the board is falling apart, it’s a concern to me,” he said. “Because we deserve this gallery.”
The new board should consider its responsibility to uphold the legacy dating back to the Mendel and include Indigenous, Metis and immigrant representatives whose voices are heard, Tootoosis added.
The new trustees take over a few days after the gallery’s executive director and CEO Gregory Burke departs to take control of his hometown gallery in Auckland, New Zealand.
Burke leaves amid reports of a Saskatchewan Human Rights Commission complaint against him. He addressed the “unproven allegation” in an emailed statement to media this week.
Burke said it dates back to 2013, when he first assumed control of the Mendel, but was not filed until 2016. His statement said he cannot talk about the matter until the process concludes, but expects to talk soon.
Burke’s last day is today. Verity said an interim CEO will be appointed by the new board. Verity acknowledged three formal workplace complaints in an email to media on Sunday, but added all three were deemed unsubstantiated.
Verity said the stress of opening the new gallery led to “workplace conflicts.”
The gallery is also without a chief curator and director of programming after Sandra Guimaraes left in January for unknown reasons.