Brodhead to serve as Yale Center for British Art’s interim director

Richard Brodhead, a former senior leader at Yale and Duke Universities, will serve as interim director of the Yale Center for British Art (YCBA) while the university seeks a successor to departing director Courtney J. Martin.

Brodhead, a former dean of Yale College who went on to become president of Duke, starts in the interim role July 1, Yale President Peter Salovey said in announcing the news Wednesday. Brodhead will serve until the new YCBA director arrives.

“His expertise and experience in leading educational institutions, deep ties to Yale University, and personal commitment to the arts will be invaluable as the museum prepares to reopen to the public in 2025, following the completion of the current building conservation project,” Salovey wrote in his announcement.

Martin has accepted an appointment as the next executive director of the Robert Rauschenberg Foundation and will complete her service as YCBA director on June 30, as previously announced.

Brodhead earned a bachelor’s degree and a doctorate in English from Yale before joining the faculty in 1972. A specialist in American literature and cultural history, he was named the A. Bartlett Giamatti Professor of English and chaired the English department before becoming dean of Yale College in 1993. Brodhead left Yale in 2004 to serve as the ninth president of Duke.

During a 13-year tenure as Duke’s president, Brodhead “championed the arts, prioritized access, and oversaw the renovation of the university’s historic campus, among other accomplishments,” Salovey said.

A search advisory committee has been formed to identify Martin’s successor. Members of the Yale community can recommend candidates and share their thoughts and ideas about the future of the museum through this webform, Salovey wrote.

“I am grateful to Dr. Brodhead for being willing to lead the YCBA during this time of transition,” Salovey said. “I would also like to take this opportunity to reiterate my appreciation of the great energy and thoughtful leadership that Dr. Martin has brought to her role as the YCBA director.”