PULLMAN, Wash. — Dyana Curreri-Ermatinger, director of San Francisco’s Dorothy Weiss Gallery, has been selected director of Washington State University’s Museum of Art. Her appointment is effective Dec. 15.
“I look forward to beginning the new year with the appointment at WSU. The excellent reputation of the program and the university played an enormous role in my decision to come,” the new director said. “My charge will be to bring the museum to the next level of excellence by broadening exhibition possibilities and providing more opportunities for accessibility to the collection.”
She plans to work with faculty in all university departments to develop programs and exhibitions that cross disciplines and provide new ways of seeing, experiencing and understanding art. She also hopes to broaden both the academic community’s and the public’s appreciation of visual art, design and architecture.
“Dyana brings energy, enthusiasm and experience to the WSU Museum of Art,” said Provost Gretchen M. Bataille. “Her many years of experience in the San Francisco art world will enrich the campus for students, faculty and staff. She has articulated her ideas about showcasing student and faculty art throughout the state of Washington, and I look forward to working with her to explore these ideas.”
Curreri-Ermatinger’s first plans include working with staff to increase the level of museum support from public and private sources.
“I am looking forward to working with the rich mix of disciplines and curricula at the university and taking advantage of the enormous potential of the use of faculty as subject area specialists,” she said.
She plans to work with museum constituencies to develop more access to the museum and its programs.
“I want to expand the learning possibilities for each and every visitor that has an experience with the museum and its programs, both on the Pullman campus and beyond.”
Curreri-Ermatinger, a Brooklyn, N.Y., native, earned her bachelor’s and master’s degrees from California State University, Sacramento, where she studied with artists associated with the Bay Area Figurative School.
Following graduation, she continued to paint, taught at the community college level and wrote freelance art criticism for numerous art publications in the San Francisco Bay area.
Curreri-Ermatinger has served as outreach coordinator and later assistant curator for the Crocker Art Museum in Sacramento and curator of the Palo Alto Cultural Center. She also was director of exhibitions and public programs for the California College of Arts and Crafts, where she served as founding director of three galleries and two public lecture series in Oakland and San Francisco.
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