DeCordova curator will leave post

Cites differences with new director

Guiding the DeCordova Museum's 1996 renovations were (from left) senior curator Rachel Rosenfield Lafo, associate curator Nick Capasso and director Paul Master-Karnik. (Mark Wilson/Globe Staff/file)

Officials at the DeCordova Museum and Sculpture Park said last week that the museum does not plan on replacing its longtime director of curatorial affairs immediately.

"The museum will use this important staff change as an opportunity to begin a long-range planning process for the curatorial department," the officials said in a statement Tuesday.

Curator Nick Capasso will take over the responsibilities of Rachel Rosenfield Lafo on an interim basis. Lafo, the director of curatorial affairs and curator of the DeCordova's main exhibition, resigned after 24 years at the museum, citing creative differences with its new director.

"I have decided to leave DeCordova because I realize that the board and new director seek a different creative direction for the museum," Lafo said in a statement Tuesday. "After nearly twenty-five fulfilling years of leading the curatorial program at DeCordova, it is time to move on to new challenges."

Lafo said she would pursue "independent curatorial and writing projects."

Lafo did not return calls seeking additional comments on her departure, less than three months after the new director's arrival.

"Rachel came to the decision, and that's really all we're going to say about that," said a museum spokesman, Corey Cronin. "She's been a great colleague, and she's done a great deal to highlight the work of New England artists during that time."

Lafo arrived in Lincoln in 1984 as the museum's senior curator and was promoted to director of curatorial affairs in 2001.

In her position, Lafo was the administrative head of the museum's displays, and was responsible for implementing new ex hibitions and installations.

Lafo was the lead curator on the DeCordova's current main exhibition, "Drawn to Detail," on view through Jan. 4. But she will have a reduced schedule until her last day, Nov. 1, officials said.

"Rachel has been a valuable member of the DeCordova community for many years," said Dennis Kois, who officially took over the museum's reins this summer, after being named in March as the fourth director in its 58-year history. "Her intellect and professionalism have helped build DeCordova into the nationally recognized institution that it is today," Kois said.

His predecessor, Paul Master-Karnik, who left the museum in 2006, had served as director since 1984, the same year Lafo came to work at the DeCordova.

Previously, Lafo served as associate curator at the Portland Art Museum in Oregon, and administrative assistant at the Center for Conservation and Technical Studies at Harvard University's Fogg Art Museum.

Founded in 1950, the DeCordova Museum and Sculpture Park sits on 35 acres alongside Sandy Pond Road in Lincoln and is home to 80 sculptural works. It has a $12 million endowment, 130,000 annual visitors, 4,100 museum members, and 38 full-time staffers.

John Guilfoil can be reached at jguilfoil@globe.com.