The Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts has terminated two additional key staff members as part of ongoing organizational changes since President Donald Trump assumed control of the Washington, D.C. institution. Kevin Struthers, senior director of music programming who headed the jazz programming department, and Malka Lasky, the last remaining member of the social impact team who coordinated the center's free Millennium Stage shows, were both laid off on Wednesday without any official explanation provided to staff.
The latest dismissals represent a continuation of the significant upheaval that has rocked the prestigious arts center since Trump took over the institution, removed its former leadership, and installed his own political allies in key positions. Trump currently serves as chairman of the Kennedy Center's board of trustees, marking a dramatic shift in the organization's direction and management structure.
Meanwhile, in San Francisco, 96-year-old Canadian artist Armand Vaillancourt has issued a cease-and-desist letter through his attorney to block city officials from demolishing his iconic 1971 Brutalist water fountain located in Embarcadero Plaza. The legal action comes in response to a redevelopment project by the city's Recreation and Parks Department that specifically requires the San Francisco Arts Commission, which owns the sculpture, to formally deaccession the Vaillancourt Fountain and remove it from the site.
The fountain has been fenced off due to structural deterioration and safety concerns, with portions of the concrete structure crumbling and posing potential hazards to the public. However, news of the demolition plans has sparked fierce opposition from preservation groups and art advocates who argue the sculpture should be restored rather than destroyed. Vaillancourt's attorney sent the cease-and-desist letter dated August 29, demanding that all parties "immediately cease and desist from taking any steps whatsoever that may endanger or damage the Vaillancourt Fountain."
In a separate development involving Nazi-looted art, two floral still life paintings by 17th-century Dutch master Ambrosius Bosschaert have reportedly surfaced at an Ohio auction house after being recovered from an abandoned safety deposit box. The works, created by Bosschaert who lived from 1573 to 1621, were allegedly stolen by Nazi forces and French collaborators during World War II from the collection of Adolphe and Luci Haas Schloss, a Jewish family of art collectors who lived in Paris during the German occupation.
If the paintings are authenticated as genuine Bosschaert works and confirmed as the pieces stolen from the Schloss family, they will be returned to the descendants of the original owners. This discovery adds to the ongoing efforts to locate and repatriate thousands of artworks that were looted during the Holocaust and remain missing decades after the war's end.
The art world is also dealing with leadership changes at major institutions. The Maison Européenne de la Photographie in Paris has dismissed its director, Simon Baker, following an internal investigation into allegations of psychological harassment and the departure of several staff members. Baker, who previously headed the photography department at London's Tate Modern, had led the French museum for seven years and presented numerous acclaimed international exhibitions during his tenure.
Additionally, a humanitarian and archaeological crisis is unfolding in northern Iraq, where severe drought in the Khanke region has exposed approximately 40 ancient tombs believed to be around 2,300 years old along the banks of the receding Mosul Dam. Researchers expect more archaeological sites to surface as water levels continue to drop, though the drought is simultaneously causing significant hardship for local communities.
These developments highlight the ongoing challenges facing cultural institutions worldwide, from political interference and leadership disputes to the preservation of historical artifacts and the impact of environmental changes on archaeological heritage sites.
