On Thursday night, the Museum of Fine Arts Boston issued a lengthy explanation about a recent round of layoffs that drew controversy, in part because many claimed the cuts unfairly targeted curators of color.
The museum denied that this was the case. “All along, we took steps to ensure that cuts would not disproportionately impact any groups based on their background or identity,” wrote director Pierre Terjanian in a statement on the museum’s website. “One third of our entire staff identified as people of color prior to the restructuring—and those numbers are the same today.”
Terjanian said that exactly 6.3 percent of the MFA’s staff had been cut, with 33 workers laid off and 489 workers remaining. “To address a grave and unsustainable structural deficit, we have taken the painful step of reducing our staff,” Terjanian wrote. He said the layoffs were “the result of a thorough review of all aspects of the Museum’s operations.”
Speaking to Kim Córdova for an article for the Boston Art Review, a union representative said the workers’ group had been notified of the layoffs just “five minutes” before an email was sent out announcing the cuts to the entire staff. Sixteen of the laid off staff members were a part of the union, while 17 were not affiliated with the group. According to the Boston Art Review article, no members of the museum’s leadership took a pay cut, though the COO position was eliminated.
Much of the furor surrounding the cuts has centered on several curators who were laid off, including Marina Tyquiengco (CHamoru) and Nadirah Mansour, respectively an associate curator of Native American art and an assistant curator of Islamic art. An Instagram Reel about those curators went viral, garnering more than 50,000 likes.
“The @mfaboston is kicking out their Native American and Islamic Art curators, conveniently during a DEI free Trump era,” wrote Ayia Elsadig, the maker of that Reel, in the caption. “What message is the MFA trying to send to Muslim, Indigenous, and other minority communities with this decision?”
Also laid off, according to the Boston Art Review, was theo tyson, a curator in the fashion arts department who reportedly self-identified as the only Black curator at the MFA.
Terjanian explained his rationale for the curatorial layoffs as such: “We also reviewed curatorial staffing levels and eliminated seven positions. We were guided by a commitment to ensure that each area of the collection will continue to be cared for and supported by remaining staff. We also sought to recalibrate the balance between curatorial staff and the many staff behind the scenes who provide direct care of collections and critical support for curatorial work.”
He concluded, “More work lies ahead to adapt our institution to current realities and future needs. We are confident we are on the right path and remain grateful to our staff—both departing and continuing—for their commitment to this essential work.
