The Metropolitan Museum board has just elected business and civic leader Daniel Brodsky to fill its top spot. He will take over on Sept. 13 for James R. Houghton, who will retire as trustee emeritus. Brodsky has been a Met board member since 2001, serving on various committees, including finance, executive, nominating, acquisitions, buildings and external affairs.
Brodsky is also chair of a special committee that is negotiating with the Whitney Museum to use their Marcel Breuer-designed Madison Avenue building for Met programming. The Whitney will break ground on a new building in the Meatpacking District later this month; it received a $131-million gift to realize that building from board chair Leonard Lauder, who stipulated that the Whitney not sell its facility.
The newly elected chairman is managing partner at the real estate development company the Brodsky Organization, established by his late father, Nathan. As noted by the New York Times, Brodsky joins two other real estate developers as chairmen of major cultural organizations-Jerry I. Speyer, of Tishman Speyer, is board chair of MoMA; and William L. Mack, of Apollo Real Estate Advisors, heads up the Guggenheim Museum board.
Brodsky, who is married to Estrellita Brodsky, an art historian and Latin American art advocate, also serves on the boards of the New York City Ballet, the Lincoln Center Development Project, New York University and the Real Estate Board of New York.
Houghton, who has been board chairman since 1998, announced his retirement on Mar. 8.
Daniel and Estrellita Brodsky.
