Monday, September 17, 2007

Kendra Gaeta

Dear Mr. Hoone,

I am writing to express my support for Director of the Warehouse Gallery, Astria Suparak.

Astria is a curator whose work is followed, noticed and considered important, fresh and smart. I’d known of her work as a programmer years before we met in person, and as part of my own research as a programmer, she was one of the contemporaries whose work I looked toward, not just to stay current, but for new ways of looking at things I had seen before. Astria’s ability for presentation and fresh context make not just the works themselves accessible, but bigger thoughts and concepts as well.

The ability to assemble and present difficult and challenging work is a skill that I hope Warehouse Gallery will not overlook in Astria. Since so much of what we get from the art we see is what we make of it, progressive and visionary curators and gallery spaces is necessary.

I will continue to follow Astria’s work wherever she ends up; she is a professional whose work will continue to be of importance. It would seem a tragedy to the local community and to the esteem of your organization to lose her.

Sincerely,
Kendra Gaeta
Lime Projects

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BACKGROUND

Syracuse has lost one its greatest assets. Astria Suparak, Inaugural Director of The Warehouse Gallery of Syracuse University, was removed from her position as of Sept. 30th, 2007, despite widespread support from community members, students, faculty, and the international art community. This decision was made unilaterally by Jeffrey Hoone, Executive Director of the Coalition of Museum and Art Centers (CMAC).

At the time of Suparak's dismissal, Hoone also canceled her forthcoming exhibitions, including "Keep It Slick: Infiltrating Capitalism with The Yes Men," due to open in November 2007.