This summer New York magazine ran a long feature about Alanna Heiss, the founder of P.S. 1. The article discussed how the Museum of Modern Art had assumed control of the contemporary art center and had decided it was time for Heiss—the powerful force that put the former schoolhouse on the cultural map as an experimental, edgy art destination—to retire. Today, a press release from MoMA announces Heiss' retirement from her position as the director of the curatorial department.
P.S.1 was consumed by the Museum of Modern Art in 2000 and it's been an interesting time for the two institutions, with expansions and decisions to find new directions and hone missions. But a few lines in the feature sums up what many are wondering:
"Heiss has been known to say that no one else could run P.S. 1, and in some ways she may be right. 'She is P.S. 1, and P.S. 1 is her,' says John Baldessari. 'It doesn’t seem like she could be replaced.' But while it is hard to imagine the center without her, it’s also surprising it’s lasted this long under her direction..."
That's still to be seen. According to the MoMA press release, following her retirement, Heiss will launch Art International Radio (AIR), "an organization that will be devoted to artistic, musical, performance, and experimental programs, in early 2009. Taking its lead from Heiss’s brainchild Art Radio WPS1.org, Art International Radio will bolster a tradition of bringing thought-provoking conversations with noteworthy artists, curators, and academics to a listening audience."
A search committee will be formed in 2009 to locate that mythical person who is supposed to replace Heiss and make P.S. 1 relevant again.
