“He transformed the Brooklyn Museum into a bold, pioneering, global center for the visual arts.” This is the reason why the director of the Brooklyn Museum was awarded the FIAC Excellence Award 2022, the award given by the foundation of the same name (Foundation for Art & Culture). The ceremony was held during a “dinner” at the Raquet and Tennis Club in the presence of the President of the FIAC Daniele Bodini, the director (President) Alain Elkann, the Italian Ambassador to the United Nations Maurizio Massari, the Consul General in New York Fabrizio Di Michele and the Director of the Italian Cultural Institute Fabio Finotti,
Through her leadership, Anne Pasternak expanded exposition, educational and public programs, and sponsored special exhibitions, including The Legacy of Lynching: Confronting Racial Terror in America, We Wanted a Revolution: Black Radical Women, 1965–85, Georgia O’Keeffe: Living Modern, David Bowie is, Soul of a Nation: Art in the Age of Black Power, and Frida Kahlo:
This confirms the great commitment of FIAC, a non-profit organization founded in New York in 2003, in the promotion of Italian cultural and artistic traditions from the classical to the contemporary period in the United States. Indeed, the Foundation works closely with the Ministry of Cultural Heritage and the main Italian cultural institutions to spread the appreciation of Italian art in the United States, and each year awards prizes to prominent personalities in the United States and Italy. An activity of excellence made possible thanks to the support of the Alexander Bodini Charitable Foundation.
During the evening, Daniele Bodini and Alain Elkann recalled the great work done by Anne Pasternak to «involve a large audience with the power of art to move, motivate and inspire, without ever forgetting the civic and democratic role that cultural and educational institutions can engage in projects that demonstrate the crucial links between art and social justice». The theme was also underlined by Ambassador Maurizio Massari, who recalled “the great importance of art and culture in maintaining peace in the world and unity among peoples”.
The Ambassador’s words were particularly appreciated by the director Pasternak, who was keen to recall the work done in this regard in the implementation of the new strategic plan of the Brooklyn Museum, designed to create stimulating encounters with art and involve the public on themes topical. Congratulation also came from Consul General Di Michele and Director Finotti, who underlined the great commitment of FIAC which made it possible to organize an evening bringing together great names from the New York cultural scene such as the director of the Guggheneim Museum Richard Armstrong, the director of the Morgan Library Colin Bailey and Frick Collection Director Ian Wardropper.