I.

Calling of the Meeting to Order - Diane B. Wilsey, President

A meeting of the Executive Committee of the Board of Trustees of the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco was held on Thursday, March 6, 2008, in the Piazzoni Murals Room, de Young Museum, Golden Gate Park, San Francisco.  A quorum being present, the meeting was called to order at 3:20 p.m. by Diane B. Wilsey, President.

President Wilsey presided; Mrs. Gough acted as Secretary.

II.

Calling of the Roll

Present:

Marion M. Cope, Vice President for Annual Support
Penny Coulter
Kathryn Lasater
Monica Maduro, Vice President for Marketing and Audience Development
Marianne H. Peterson
Michael H. Podell
Jeanne Robertson
Trevor D. Traina
Diane B. Wilsey, President

Excused:

Kermit Boston
Iris S. Chan
Robert P. Morrow III
Carl Pascarella
Louise H. Renne
Lonna Wais

Other Trustees in Attendance:

Cheryl Bancroft
George Hecksher
J. Burgess Jamieson

III.

Report of the President – Diane B. Wilsey

A. Consideration and Possible Action to Approve the Minutes of the January 24, 2008 Meeting of the Board of Trustees

There being no discussion among the Trustees or members of the public, the minutes of the January 24, 2008 meeting of the Board of Trustees, having been mailed in advance to all Trustees, were unanimously approved.

B. Consideration and Possible Action to Approve the Report of the February 6, 2008 Meeting of the Acquisitions Committee of the Fine Arts Museums Foundation - George Hecksher, Vice President for Collections, and Chair of the Acquisitions Committee

Chair Hecksher provided the report of the February 6, 2008 meeting of the Acquisitions Committee of the Fine Arts Museums Foundation.

1. Purchase

Chair Hecksher reported that the Acquisitions Committee recommended 1 work of Ancient Art to the Board of Trustees for purchase approval as follows and as listed on page 1 of Appendix I of these minutes:

Ancient Art

Achaemenid Persian Relief, ca. 490-470 BC – This rare and significant wall relief made of Bituminous limestone, h. 21 cm (8 1/8 in.), is from the South Stairs of the Palace of Darius or the East or West Stairs of the Palace of Xerxes in the Persian, Persepolis, Achaemenid Empire.  The object is an exquisitely carved Persian sculpture from the fabled ancient site of Persepolis located in modern southwestern Iran.  It is currently on display at the Legion of Honor.

2. Funded Purchases

Four funded purchases including Dolores (Photographed for Vogue),1921, by Baron Adolphe de Meyer (French, 1868–1969), generously funded by a Trustee, and two works by Michael Light (American, b. 1963), Mono Craters 07.17.06, 2006 and  Mono Craters 07.17.06 #10: Burned Jeffrey Pine Forest and Tephra Flow Looking Southeast, Highway 120 at Right, Mono Basin, CA, 2006, also funded through the generosity of a Trustee, were recommended to the Board of Trustees for purchase approval.  The funded purchases are listed on page 2 of Appendix I of these minutes.

3. Gifts Offered to the Museums

American Art

Abstract Construction, ca. 1937, by Charles Green Shaw (American, 1892-1974), is a low-relief construction created from painted wood elements mounted on a wood support.  The artist was a founding member of the American abstract artists group.  This artwork, gifted to the Fine Arts Museums Foundation, joins Geometric Abstraction, ca. 1937, by the same artist, which was also given to the Foundation by the same donor at the end of 2007.

Prints and Drawings

Rembrandt's Golden Helmet Capping Turner's Ship, ca. 1970, Joseph Goldyne (American, b. 1942) – This monotype with watercolor is the gift of a Trustee in honor of Robert Flynn Johnson upon his retirement as Curator in Charge of the Achenbach Foundation for Graphic Arts on June 30, 2007.

Untitled (Rodin), 1973, David Levine (American, b. 1926) – Also gifted in honor of Robert Flynn Johnson upon his retirement, this graphite work on paper is donated by a former director of the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco.

A gift of 58 works on paper by various artists was generously donated to the Museums’ Prints and Drawings collection.

Chair Hecksher expressed sincere appreciation to all donors.  The gifts offered to the Museums by the Fine Arts Museums Foundation are listed on page 3 of Appendix I of these minutes.

4. First Step Deaccessioning

Chair Hecksher noted that in keeping with the deaccesioning goals outlined in the 2007 curatorial presentations, the February 6^th Acquisitions Committee meeting focused on deaccessioning with 415 artworks proposed for first or second step deaccessioning.  The artworks listed on page 4 of Appendix I of these minutes were recommended by the Acquisitions Committee for first step deaccessioning, including 2 European Decorative Arts objects, 183 Jade Oriental Decorative Arts objects, and 17 various works on paper.

5. Second Step Deaccessioning

The artworks listed on page 5 of Appendix I of these minutes were recommended by the Acquisitions Committee for second step deaccessioning, including 15 works of American art, 81 European Decorative Arts objects, and 117 various works on paper.

Chair Hecksher introduced the following resolution:

RESOLVED, That the Board of Trustees of the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco does hereby approve the February 6, 2008 report of the Acquisitions Committee of the Fine Arts Museums Foundation, including approving the works of art acquired through purchase and donation, with the exception of one gift to the Fine Arts Museums Foundation, as gifts to the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco from the Fine Arts Museums Foundation.

On motion, duly seconded, there was no discussion among Trustees.  There was no public testimony.  The Board of Trustees voted unanimously to adopt the above resolution as Board Resolution 1639.

C. Consideration and Possible Action to Change the Date of the Board of Trustees Meeting from Thursday, June 12, 2008, to Tuesday, June 24, 2008

President Wilsey introduced the following resolution:

RESOLVED, That at the request of the President, the Executive Committee of the Board of Trustees does hereby change the date of the June 2008 Board of Trustees meeting from Thursday, June 12, 2008, to Tuesday, June 24, 2008; and, be it

FURTHER RESOLVED, That the time and location of the June 24, 2008 Board of Trustees meeting remain unchanged, namely 3 p.m., in the Board Room at the Legion of Honor.

On motion, duly seconded, there was no discussion among the Trustees.  There was no public testimony.  The Executive Committee voted unanimously to adopt the above resolution as Board Resolution 1640.

IV.

Report of the Director of Museums – John E. Buchanan, Jr.

A. Consideration and Possible Action to Approve a Loan Request

Mr. Buchanan presented the following loan request:

From: The Chunichi Shimbun, Nagoya, Japan

For: Visual Deception
Nagoya City Art Museum, Nagoya, Japan:  4/11/09-6/7/09
The Bunkamura Museum of Art, Tokyo, Japan:  6/13/09-8/16/09
Hyogo Prefectural Museum of Art, Kobe, Japan:  8/25/09-11/3/09

a. William Michael Harnett (American, 1848-1892)
The Meerschaum Pipe, 1886
Oil on canvas, 17 1/8 x 12 1/8 (43.5 x 30.8 cm)
Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco, Gift of Mr. and Mrs. John Rockefeller 3rd
1979.7.46

b. John Haberle (American, 1856-1933)
The Slate: Memoranda, ca. 1895
Oil on canvas, 12 1/8 x 9 1/8 (30.8 x 23.2 cm)
Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco, Museum purchase by exchange, gift of Miss F. M. Knowles, Mrs. William K. Gutskow, Miss Keith Wakeman, and the M. H. de Young Endowment Fund
72.29

Stipulations: The paintings must be accompanied by a FAMSF courier from San Francisco to Nagoya, Japan, and from Kobe, Japan to San Francisco, and must be part of a couriered shipment between venues.  All related expenses will be paid by the requesting organization.

A motion was made and seconded to approve the loan request noted above.  There was no discussion among Trustees.  There was no public testimony.  The Executive Committee voted unanimously to approve the loans subject to the conditions stated.

V.

Public Comment

Members of the public may address the Executive Committee on items that are within the subject matter jurisdiction of the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco.  Speakers may address the Executive Committee for up to three minutes; the President or the Executive Committee may limit the total comment to thirty minutes.  There was no public comment.

VI.

Meeting Schedule, Future Events and Current and Future Exhibits

A. 2008 Board of Trustees Meetings

B. 2008 Executive Committee Meetings

C. Future Events

D. Current and Future Exhibitions[2]

Legion of Honor - Major Special Exhibitions

de Young Museum -  Major Special Exhibitions

VII.

Adjournment – Diane B. Wilsey, President

There being no further business, President Wilsey adjourned the meeting at 3:27 p.m.

Respectfully submitted,

Judy Gough
Executive Secretary

These minutes set forth all actions taken up by the Executive Committee on matters stated, but not necessarily in the order in which the matters were considered.