BMA names new curator for contemporary collections
The Baltimore Museum of Art has a new curator for its collection of contemporary paintings and sculptures. Kirsten Hineman, 36, who currently is associate curator for the Smithsonian Institute's Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, begins her new job in Baltimore on Nov. 2. She's replacing Darcy Alexander, the BMA's former curator of contemporary art, who resigned earlier this year to accept the top arts curating job at Minneapolis' Walker Art Center. In announcing the appointment, the Art Museum's director, Doreen Bolger, praised Hineman's "experience working with artists on collaborative projects and familiarity with Baltimore's cultural community." Hineman, a graduate of the University of Maryland, College Park, has worked at the Hirshhorn for the past eight years. She also has taught at the Corcoran College of Art and Design and at George Washington University. Her first project will be coordinating the Baltimore visit of a national touring show on Andy Warhol's later paintings, scheduled to open locally in October 2010.
Mary Carole McCauley
Evangelical Lutheran bishop says he'll retire in October
The Rev. H. Gerard "Jerry" Knoche, bishop of the Delaware-Maryland Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America since 2000, is retiring in October, three years before his second term was to have expired. In a letter presented to the Synod Council at their July meeting, Knoche said health issues over the past two years, including the need for a double knee replacement in the near future, led him to the decision. "The synod needs a bishop who does not have to devote so much time to self-care when there is so much synodical work to be done," Knoche said in the letter. In a statement, Synod Council Vice President Yolanda Tanner expressed "sincere sadness" at the bishop's retirement, but said the council will "respect and honor his decision to address his health concerns at this time." The council said it will likely replace Knoche with an interim bishop until a new bishop can be elected at a special meeting in January.
