Art: Meet the Walker's new director

This is an extended interview with Olga Viso from the print version of the Star Tribune.

Olga Viso, 41, was named director of Walker Art Center last week, concluding a six-month international search to replace Kathy Halbreich, who is leaving Nov. 1. Director of the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden since 2005, Viso (pronounced VEE-zo) has been at the Washington, D.C., institution for 12 years, working her way up through the curatorial ranks. She begins work at the Walker in January. She talked by telephone Wednesday about her career and her vision for the Walker:

Q How did the Walker job come about?

A I was contacted by a Walker adviser, and several trustees approached me because I've had an ongoing relationship with the Walker as a sister institution to the Hirshhorn. I was delighted because I admire the Walker so much; it's one of the great contemporary institutions in the country and the world.

Q What are some of the similarities and differences between the Hirshhorn and the Walker?

A The Hirshhorn's mandate is global art, just as it is at the Walker. And both collections were inspired by a benefactor whose collection became the core of the institution but then evolved over time. The Hirshhorn, like the Walker, has great strength in individual artists. That's something very close to my heart, because it underscores that institutional commitment to artists.

The Hirshhorn's collection goes back further in time than the Walker's, but where the Walker really stands out is that, in addition to individual artists, it has focused on art-historical movements like Fluxus and Arte Povera that fell outside the art historical canon but have proved to be incredibly timely and prescient. That vision is very exceptional.

The Walker also has a multidisciplinary focus, with incredible film, performing-arts and media programs that make it uniquely suited to take the pulse of the moment. Few other museums have those elements. Contemporary artists are working across media and disciplines, and the Walker really reflects that with authority. I would like to encourage and foster that even more.

At the Hirshhorn, for example, we're organizing a retrospective of Guillermo Kuitca, an Argentine painter who started as a theatrical stage designer and has done incredible sets for Wagner operas. We're trying to partner with the Kennedy Center to do a performance or something.

Q What Hirshhorn programs might you transplant to the Walker?

A We have a series called "Ways of Seeing" in which we invite artists to install a 10,000-square-foot space in our galleries with any aspect of our collection that interests them. It's incredibly inspirational to see young artists take sometimes obscure or historical work and give it a fresh take. What inspires artists is often not obvious. We've found that putting forth the voices of artists does open doors for people. It demystifies art and provides a compelling point of entry, makes art more approachable.

Q How do you envision the sculpture garden extension that is to be built on the site of the original Guthrie Theater?

A I have no specific plans yet, but it is an incredible opportunity to complete the site and integrate the sculpture garden and the building more fully. That's something I've struggled with at the Hirshhorn, too, because its sculpture garden sits across a street and gets more visitors than the museum. At the Walker, there's a tremendous opportunity to invite artists to think about how to open up the Walker into the garden.

Q Talk about some of the challenges facing the Walker and how you might address them.

A The challenges are those any contemporary art museum has, but I'd call them opportunities rather than challenges: how to invite visitors to return and to avail themselves of all the programs; how to make contemporary art accessible and approachable so people want to come back; how to really create a sense of community.

Integrating the sculpture garden and building is another opportunity. But I have to be there. I have a very participatory management style, and there are many creative people at the Walker. I'm interested in how the community feels about the garden. It's rife with possibilities to create another iconic piece like [former director] Martin Friedman did when he commissioned the Oldenburg "Spoonbridge and Cherry" sculpture and the Armajani bridge.

Q Contemporary films and music have enormous popular audiences, but art often seems to be a difficult sell to the general public. Why is that?

A If we could answer that, we'd have solved one of the great mysteries, because contemporary-museum people struggle with that all the time. The public is somehow just more comfortable listening to music and seeing films. The challenge with art is somewhat greater, maybe because it requires a different kind of interactivity.

At the Hirshhorn we try to bring artists into the equation, by putting a quote on a wall, or their voices on Art on Call [a cell-phone tour program initiated by the Walker and copied elsewhere]. That somehow demystifies the experience and makes it more approachable. The challenge is to provide points of entry for the public, and they differ with every exhibition.

Q What artists or types of art do you want to introduce to Minnesotans?

A Again, it's premature to say. I really need to understand more what the curators have in mind. A lot of museums say they're global and international, but few have the resources to do that the way the Walker has. It really has been exceptional in bringing in artists and scholars from South America, Africa, the Middle East, Asia. I want to do even more so the program and exhibition staff remain very global.

Q Do you like parties?

A [Laughs.] I'm a very social being and a very private being, too. I like to balance those things. I'm very involved with the community here and welcome the opportunity to get to know the people of the Twin Cities.

Q What do you do, and where do you go, to escape the pressures of your job?

A I do yoga, so sometimes my escape is just in my apartment. I can't travel to cities without going to art museums, so the only way for me to really relax is to go into nature. I grew up in Florida, but I go to Maine every summer. I'm looking forward to discovering Minnesota's lakes because I like to go to mountains or water areas to write. I have a couple of book projects that I'm working on.

Q You're moving here in January. Have you bought a new down wardrobe yet?

A I haven't, but I have been told that REI and I will be great friends. I welcome tips about how to keep warm and be fashionable, too.

Mary Abbe • 612-673-4431

Mary Abbe • mabbe@startribune.com