Adrienne Luce Named Director of the Claremont Museum of Art as Part of Broader Expansion
The Claremont Museum of Art is pleased to announce the appointment of Adrienne Luce as director of the Claremont Museum of Art. Adrienne is an experienced nonprofit arts leader who received her MFA from Claremont Graduate University and has spent twenty years working in the arts. Her appointment is part of the Museum’s overall expansion plans. In Spring 2022 the Museum will debut two new stunning galleries that will more than double the current exhibition space. Under Adrienne’s direction, the expanded museum will be a catalyst to spur creative thinking, engagement and innovative programming for the broader community.
“I am humbled and honored to join the Museum and to partner with such an outstanding board of directors. Together we will bring the vision for the Museum to fruition and, in doing so, inspire audiences through the power of art, enrich the community and the cultural vitality of the region, and preserve Claremont’s rich artistic legacy.” —CMA Director Adrienne Luce
“We are thrilled to have Adrienne as our director. She is a proven leader who will continue to build relationships in the community and across arts organizations, and elevate the profile of CMA to realize our mission and vision for the future.” —CMA Board President Elaine Turner
More About Adrienne Luce
Adrienne comes to the Museum having spent nearly a decade at The J. Paul Getty Museum. As an education specialist, she oversaw the design and delivery of arts education programs that doubled attendance to serve 80,000 students and teachers per year. As a digital communications manager, she increased the museum’s reach on social media to more than 3 million followers. She currently serves as the executive director of the HMC Architects Designing Futures Foundation where she has overseen the investment of $1.4 million to 100+ nonprofits. Most recently served as the executive director of the Brentwood Art Center where she led her team to achieve record attendance and revenue and successfully transitioned the organization’s programs online during the pandemic. Adrienne worked as a consultant for the Los Angeles County Arts Commission and as the executive director of the California State Summer School Arts Foundation. She graduated from Arizona State University with a double major in Art History and Fine Arts. Adrienne has served on numerous nonprofit boards including Inner-City Arts, MOCA Contemporaries, and the Craft Contemporary Craft Council. She currently serves on the LA County Department of Arts and Culture Funders Council.
More About the Museum Expansion
IMAGINE MORE MUSEUM
More walls, for more art, more programs and more people
As the Claremont Museum of Art enters its sixth year occupying two rooms of the Claremont Depot, the Museum is renovating the remaining spaces into galleries and a community room. The original, historic Santa Fe Depot will be transformed into a vibrant cultural destination in the heart of the Claremont Village.
The adaptive reuse of this historic building has been a very successful public/private partnership with the City of Claremont, Metro, and the generous support of CMA members and friends throughout the local area. The CMA Board of Directors is immensely grateful to the city of Claremont for its support and for undertaking the mandated seismic and accessibility work on the eastern end of the Depot with funding approved by Metro with the Museum as the tenant. The Claremont Depot is part of Metrolink’s rail network, and it will be part of Metro’s Foothill Gold Line system in the near future. Further, Metro has made it a priority to support art in public spaces at each of its rail stops, which is why the Metro Board found it appropriate for Prop C funds to be utilized at the Claremont stop to support retrofitting and safety.
With a fund-raising goal of $300,000 for this final phase of the renovation, the Museum has raised over $120,000 over the past two years in a quiet phase of the “Imagine More Museum” campaign to turn the two most eastern rooms into galleries. The new galleries are expected to open with a major exhibition of the Museum’s permanent collection in April 2022.
With high ceilings and expansive wall and floor space, the new galleries will more than double CMA’s exhibition and educational opportunities and allow the Museum to showcase a mix of art, sculpture and media to inspire art lovers of all ages. As the “Imagine More Museum” fundraising campaign moves forward, the final piece of the expansion, the addition of a glassed-in Community Room will begin. It will reshape the West Portico into a venue for smaller programs, art classes, and special events.
More About the Renovation
Local architect, John Bohn, of JBohn Associates, is heading up the project with contractor Darin Ross, of Ross Construction. Bohn has worked with the CMA Board of Directors since the Museum moved into the Claremont Depot in 2015. He developed the plans to renovate and restore the Atrium and add a “second skin” to the former Foothill Transit Office to turn it into a gallery, without impacting the original walls of the interior of the historic building.
The same care and attention to detail are being followed in remodeling the final two rooms in the Depot into galleries. The original, rare 100-year-old plank cedar flooring in the old bike room was saved, and, after milling and sanding, it is being reinstalled in gallery 3 and stained. The adjacent room, the old luggage room, which had a cement floor will now have Douglas fir flooring stained to match the cedar in gallery 3. The original ceilings in both rooms are also being retained and track lighting will be hung from the ceiling in the two new galleries. The construction is expected to be completed by late October.