Amy Sadao

Amy Sadao
Born1971
Los Angeles, California
EducationB.F.A., Cooper Union School of Art, 1995
M.A., Comparative Ethnic Studies University of California, Berkeley, 2000

Amy Sadao is a contemporary art curator and nonprofit consultant who was director of the Institute of Contemporary Art in Philadelphia from September 2012 to September 2019.[1][2][3][4] Sadao was executive director of Visual AIDS in New York City prior to her appointment to the ICA directorship.[5] She has been known to engage diverse communities and to center art around the contemporary social and political issues across the globe.[6]

Biography

Born in California in 1971,[7] Sadao grew up in Huntington Beach, California.[8] She received her BFA from the Cooper Union School of Art in 1995 and an MA in comparative ethnic studies from the University of California, Berkeley in 2000.[2]

Career

Sadao began her career in museums as a curatorial intern at the Whitney Museum of American Art.[2] At the Whitney museum, she worked with curator, Thelma Golden.[8]

Sadao was the executive director of Visual AIDS in New York City for ten years, from 2002 through 2012.[9] During her time at Visual AIDS, she increased outreach and expanded available resources surrounding HIV/AIDS to encourage discussion and support of HIV+ artists. In June 2012, she became the Director of the Institute of Contemporary Art (ICA).[10]

University of Pennsylvania President Amy Gutmann and Provost Vincent Price announced her appointment to a directorship named for Daniel W. Dietrich II, honoring his substantial financial gift in 2005. In 2015, he also gave a US$10 million endowment to the university[11] in support of its curatorial program and to help bring artists to Philadelphia.[12] Describing her as "a leader of unparalleled energy and vision", Gutmann commented, "She has an especially strong commitment to forging collaborations across a wide range of diverse communities and placing art at the center of dialogue about the most significant intellectual, political, and social issues of the contemporary world."[13] Price said, "I have been particularly impressed by her understanding of the role of art in a research university – and in catalyzing intellectual and interdisciplinary inquiry in general – as well as by the knowledge she brings of Penn and Philadelphia."[13]

She was elected to the board of the Pennsylvania Humanities Council in 2015.[14]

Awards

  • 2014: ArtTable New Leadership Awards[15]

References

  1. ^ "Amy Sadao, Director of Philadelphia's Institute of Contemporary Art, Steps Down". www.artforum.com. Retrieved 2019-10-12.
  2. ^ a b c MacAllister, Bonnie (30 July 2012). "After Decade at NYC's Visual AIDS, Sadao Chooses Philly's ICA". Philadelphia - Flying Kite Media. Retrieved 2018-03-13.
  3. ^ "Philadelphia's Cultural Treasures Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)". William Penn Foundation. 2021-12-07. Retrieved 2024-02-24.
  4. ^ "Amy Sadao - About - Independent Curators International". curatorsintl.org. Retrieved 2024-02-24.
  5. ^ "Amy Sadao". The Pew Center for Arts & Heritage. 2016-11-30. Retrieved 2018-03-14.
  6. ^ "Amy Sadao Named Director of the Institute of Contemporary Art at the University of Pennsylvania". ArtForum. 21 June 2012. Retrieved 2018-03-14.
  7. ^ "California Birth Index, 1905-1995". search.ancestry.com. Retrieved March 21, 2018.
  8. ^ a b Timpane, John (30 October 2012). "Tasty ICA Art Snacks". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved 2018-03-14 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. ^ Rochester, Katherine (26 September 2012). "Director's Take". Philadelphia Weekly. Archived from the original on 2018-03-15. Retrieved 14 March 2018 – via HighBeam Research.
  10. ^ Timpane, John (30 October 2012). "Tasty Art Snacks". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved 2018-03-14 – via Newspapers.com.
  11. ^ Ghorashi, Hannah (2015-04-30). "ICA Receives $10 M. Gift From Daniel W. Dietrich II, Doubling Its Endowment". ARTnews. Retrieved 2018-03-14. Dietrich has been a longtime supporter of the museum, and led a capital campaign in 2005 by endowing the Daniel W. Dietrich II position now occupied by Sadao.
  12. ^ Salisbury, Stephen (30 April 2015). "ICA Receives $10 Million Gift". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved 2018-03-14 – via Newspapers.com.
  13. ^ a b McWilliams, Julie (21 June 2012). "Amy Sadao Appointed Dietrich Director of the Institute of Contemporary Art at Penn". Penn News. Retrieved 2018-03-14.
  14. ^ "The Pennsylvania Humanities Council". The Philadelphia Inquirer. 14 December 2015. Retrieved 2018-03-14 – via Newspapers.com.
  15. ^ Cook, Christina (8 May 2014). "ICA's Sadao honored for leadership in visual arts". Penn Current. Retrieved 2018-03-14.