NG director elected head of Caribbean association
Natalie Urquhart (Photo by Melissa Wolfe)
(CNS Local Life): Natalie Urquhart, director of the National Gallery of the Cayman Islands (NGCI), was recently elected president of the Museums Association of the Caribbean (MAC), an announcement that followed the 28th annual MAC general meeting and conference held in Miami, Florida in late 2017. MAC was formed in 1987 to strengthen links among Caribbean museums, their staff and associates, to share industry knowledge and expertise and to work towards the development of professional standards of museum practice across the region.
In recent years, following the growth of MAC’s annual conference and AGM which brings together an international network of curators and museum workers, MAC is becoming the go-to resource for Caribbean museums, stated an NGCI press release.
The NGCI joined MAC in 2014 as part of the organisation’s strategic vision to increase dialogue with the Caribbean museum sector and opportunities for Cayman museum professionals and artists. NGCI was invited to host the 2016 annual conference and AGM which brought delegates from 12 countries to the Cayman Islands, in addition to more than 25 local attendees. Urquhart joined the board in 2016.
“Cayman has a growing museums, galleries and heritage sector and part of our mission at NGCI is to ensure that we provide wide networking, professional development and work exchange prospects for our team, locally and internationally,” Urquhart said. “MAC has really opened up opportunities both here in Cayman, and at regional conferences, and so it’s important to support the work they do.”
As to her recent appointment at MAC, she said, “I am honoured to have been elected to this position at such an exciting time in the organisation’s history. We are in a process of expansion, and will also celebrate thirty years during my tenure. I look forward to ensuring that NGCI and the Cayman Islands are firmly part of this dialogue.”
Urquhart joins a prestigious group of board members including vice president Joanne Hyppolite (Smithsonian National Museum of African American History & Culture, US), treasurer Lauren Christie (Berman Fisher, Cayman Islands), secretary Csilla Ariese-Vandemeulebroucke (Leiden University, the Netherlands), Arminda Franken-Ruiz (Fundacion 1403, Aruba), Jacques Martial (Mémorial ACTe, Guadeloupe), Kevin Farmer (Barbados Museum & Historical Society, Barbados), Lee Jolliffe (University of New Brunswick, Canada), Luce Hodge-Smith (Ministry of Education and Culture, British Virgin Islands), former president, Dr Sherene James-Williamson (University of the West Indies Geology Museum, Jamaica) and Yvonne Tang (Lord Cultural Resources, Canada).
Congratulations to a very dedicated Caymanian! Well done Natalie.