William J.S. Boyle, Chief Executive Officer of Harbourfront Centre and Shanitha Kachan, President of the Board of Directors of The Power Plant Contemporary Art Gallery, Harbourfront Centre, are pleased to announce the appointment of Gaëtane Verna to the position of Director, The Power Plant Contemporary Art Gallery at Harbourfront Centre.
Verna is scheduled to begin her new position as Director of Canada’s leading non-collecting contemporary art gallery on 1 March, 2012. Gaëtane Verna is currently Executive Director and Chief Curator of the Musée d’art de Joliette, in Lanaudière, Quebec. From 1998 to 2006, she was the curator of the Forman Art Gallery of Bishop’s University. In her more than 15-year career, she has gained invaluable experience in presenting and organizing many exhibitions by emerging, mid-career and established Canadian and international artists such as Vasco Araújo, Luis Jacob, Kimsooja, François Lacasse, Oswaldo Maciá, Ed Pien, Gabor Szilasi, Javier Tellez, Denyse Thomasos, and Bill Viola, among others.
“Gaëtane Verna comes to Toronto with an outstanding set of achievements, exemplifying her competence in all capacities of museum operations,” said Shanitha Kachan. “As a successful fundraiser, a notable curator and proven strategic leader, she will steer The Power Plant in a new direction at an exciting time in its 25-year history. With enthusiasm and excitement, we look forward to a new day at the gallery with Gaëtane at the helm.”
“After an extensive international search, I am extremely pleased to welcome Gaëtane Verna to Harbourfront Centre as the new Director of The Power Plant,” said William Boyle. “Gaëtane possesses all the skills and expertise to lead The Power Plant to a new level of achievement and recognition.”
Verna holds a DEA and a Masters degree from the Université Paris | Pantheon Sorbonne as well as an International Diploma in Heritage Administration and Conservation from the Ecole National du Patrimoine (France). Since 2006, she has served a Board member of the Montréal Arts Council as well as the President of the Visual Arts Committee.