A New Era for Columbus Art Museums

The Community's Conversation

The Columbus Museum of Art and The Wexner Center for The Arts are two giants on the Columbus arts scene, and both have new leaders at their helms.

Gaëtane Verna is the Wexner Center's new executive director, taking over the institution’s leadership last November. Born in the Republic of Congo, and a Quebecer since age two, she is the first woman of color, and person of color, to lead “The Wex.”

On Broad Street, the 145-year-old Columbus Museum of Art welcomed new leader Brooke Minto in May. Born in New York to Jamaican parents, Minto has worked to inspire people to engage with the arts in New York City, New Orleans, Miami, and Cape Town.

Today, we meet these two new dynamic leaders for a conversation spotlighting what’s “new and next” at CMA, The Wex, and in the Columbus arts world.

The speakers are:

Brooke Minto, Executive Director and CEO, The Columbus Museum of Art

And Gaëtane Verna, Executive Director, Wexner Center for the Arts

The host is Erica Thompson, Features Editor, The Columbus Dispatch

This forum was sponsored by The Greater Columbus Arts Council, Benefactor Group, and CoverMyMeds and was supported by The Ellis. The livestream was presented by The Center for Human Kindness at The Columbus Foundation and by The Columbus Dispatch.

This forum was recorded before a live audience at The Ellis in Columbus, Ohio’s historic Italian Village on October 4, 2023.