As the new school year begins, many changes will be seen around campus, especially in Long Beach State’s College of the Arts. Paul Baker Prindle, formerly from the University of Nevada, Reno, will be joining CSULB as the new museum director.
Recent retiree dean of the College of the Arts, Cyrus Parker-Jeannette expressed her appreciation for Baker Prindle in a statement.
“As we receive a large gift, add the Kleefeld Collection to a significant permanent collection, and plan major renovations; I can think of no better steward and collaborator to manage this transition than Paul Baker Prindle,” she said.
Baker Prindle has developed programs that serve students, school districts, community elders and marginalized populations, he said He has built two museum permanent collections and has worked to support and collect the work of self-taught artists, LGTBQ+ artists and Native Americans.
“In the month that I have been here and in the next few months to come, we will talk with our campus and community stakeholders about how we can best serve them while advancing arts integration with other disciplines,” Baker Prindle said. “We also want to engage students in active conversations and collaborations…while we are in our current space and elsewhere during the construction.”
CSULB’s art museum just recently underwent a name change to the Carolyn Campagna Kleefeld Contemporary Art Museum after a large donation of $10 million from the artist. Including Baker Prindle’s newly appointed directorship, the College of the Arts has already been in the process of major alterations.
After spending 15 years at CSULB, Cyrus Parker-Jeannette only recently retired from her deanship earlier this month (Associate Dean Margaret Black will serve as interim dean). And with the help of Kleefeld’s donation, the museum will be undergoing construction renovations. It will be closed for two years starting in December.
“The programs we develop during this evolutionary time will seek to connect with students, faculty, staff, supporters and the public in a participatory way,” Baker Prindle said. “I aim to help build the institution into one that leads through excellence and accessible cross-disciplinary education.”
This article previously reported inaccurate information on the photo caption and was corrected on Aug. 27 at 7:36 p.m.