Cincinnati Museum Center leads effort to bring prestigious arts conference to the United States for first time since 1965
CINCINNATI, OH – Every three years, more than 3,000 museum experts and professionals representing more than 100 nationalities gather for the General Conference of the International Council of Museums. This week, Cincinnati welcomed a delegation from the United States National Committee (ICOM-US) to plan a formal bid to host the 25th General Conference in 2019.
Cincinnati was presented as the U.S. host city for the bid at ICOM-US’ board meeting in Seattle, Washington earlier this year. If selected, Cincinnati would be just the second United States host city for the General Conference and the first since New York in 1965. The 2013 event was held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, and the 2016 conference is planned for Milan, Italy. The event would bring more than 3,000 attendees, using 13,000 hotel room nights and delivering $3.8 million in economic impact.
Board leaders from ICOM-US arrived in Cincinnati last weekend and joined Douglass McDonald, a fellow ICOM-US board member and president and CEO of the Cincinnati Museum Center. This group included: Elizabeth Duggal, Deputy Director, Hirshhorn Museum & Sculpture Garden; Kathy Dwyer Southern
Professor- George Washington University Museum Studies Program; Diana Pardue, Director, Museum Services Division, Statue of Liberty & Ellis Island Immigration Museum; and William U. Eiland, Director, Georgia Museum of Art.
McDonald led the delegation on visits to the Aronoff Center, Cincinnati Art Museum, Cincinnati Museum Center, Music Hall, the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center, Cincinnati Reds Hall of Fame, and Taft Museum of Art as well as numerous hotels and meeting venues.
“It has been a thrill to host our friends from the U.S. National Committee, and we’re so honored that Cincinnati has been selected by ICOM-US as the U.S. bid city for 2019,” said McDonald. “Cincinnati has cultivated one of the world’s great arts and culture communities, and this process will celebrate our history in the arts and the extraordinary organizations and individuals who continue to shape it.”
During its visit, the delegation met with local museum and community leaders, including Alecia Kintner, CEO of Artswave; Cameron Kitchin, Director of the Cincinnati Art Museum; C.G. Newsome, President of National Underground Railroad Freedom Center; Debra Scott, Director of the Taft Museum of Art; and Dan Lincoln, president and CEO of the Cincinnati USA Convention & Visitors Bureau.
Founded in 1946, ICOM is the only international organization representing museums and museum professionals. The organization helps members of the global museum community preserve, conserve and share cultural heritage through a network of 32,000 members representing 137 countries and territories. The triennial General Conference provides a platform for thousands of museum professionals from different cultures to share their expertise and experience. The organization is expected to announce the winning destination for the 2019 host city following a presentation to the International Board in June of 2015.
“We’re excited for this new opportunity to host another major international conference,” added Dan Lincoln of the Cincinnati USA Convention & Visitors Bureau. “This event has previously been held in places like Paris, Vienna and Moscow, and for 2019 we’ll be competing with cities in Asia and South America. We know our credentials as a world-class arts destination will measure up and our track record of successfully hosting high-profile events is second to none.”
About the International Council of Museums
ICOM is an international and non-profit organization dedicated to the development and advancement of museums and the museum profession. Founded in 1946, ICOM counts 32,000 members in 137 countries providing a worldwide communications network for museum professionals of all disciplines and specialties. For more information, visit www.icom.org