After 15 months without a director, the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco announced Wednesday that the board has chosen Colin B. Bailey, a deputy director at the Frick Collection in New York, as the new chief. Mr. Bailey said in an interview that he is excited about his new position and unfazed about the turmoil among the staff that the museums have been experiencing.
In the past year, the museums have gone through bitter labor negotiations, a string of dismissals of senior staff, and pointed criticism of the board president, Diane Wilsey, who has been accused of exercising too much control over daily operations.
“No one likes to hear of problems in an institution,†Mr. Bailey said. “But not for a minute did any of this reporting diminish my incredible excitement and the honor of having this position.†On the top of his agenda is getting to know the collection, the board and the staff, he said.
The Fine Arts Museums, comprised of the de Young Museum in Golden Gate Park and the Legion of Honor, are together considered the fourth most-visited museums in the country.
Mr. Bailey, who started at the Frick in 2000, has also worked at the National
Gallery of Canada, the J. Paul Getty Museum in Los Angeles, the Philadelphia Museum of Art and the Kimbell Art Museum in Ft. Worth.
