The minister canceled the selection process for the head of the NG and will announce a new one

Prague - Minister of Culture Jiří Besser (TOP 09) has canceled, according to Aktuálně.cz, the selection process for the director-general of the National Gallery (NG) and simultaneously decided to announce a new one so that the new director of NG can be appointed by June 1 of next year. The current head of NG, Milan Knížák, will lead the gallery according to the minister's decision only until the end of August next year, Aktuálně.cz writes. At the same time, Besser decided today to commission an audit of NG and establish his advisory committee, which will conduct a review of the current concept of the gallery.
    Knížák stated today in the Czech Radio program Dvacet minut Radiožurnálu that he will not apply for the new selection process. He added that he would like to remain as the head of the gallery until the end of 2011 - he wants to "complete some projects" that he has initiated. He considers it his duty to see them through. "But I care that a person capable of continuing what I have so stubbornly started gets into the leadership of the National Gallery," Knížák said.
    "The Ministry of Culture will announce a new selection process with the expectation of appointing a new director-general by June 1, 2011. The handover of duties will take place by August 31, 2011, which will conclude with the signing of a handover protocol," according to the minister's decision as reported by Aktuálně.cz.
    The canceled selection process was announced in February of this year by Besser's predecessor Václav Riedlbauch. The new head of NG was supposed to be proposed by an international committee, which agreed to recommend Jiří Fajt, a historian focused on old art. Fajt worked at NG in the 90s when he led the Collection of Old Art but left the gallery after disagreements with Knížák. However, Riedlbauch ultimately decided not to appoint a new director and leave it to his successor. He presented three proposals to him: Fajt, the director of the Moravian Gallery in Brno, Marek Pokorný, and economist Vladimír Rösela.
    Aktuálně.cz writes that Besser decided today to commission an audit of NG and establish his advisory committee, which will conduct a review of the current concept of the gallery. "In cooperation with this advisory body, a professional review of the valid Concept of the National Gallery will be conducted," according to the minister's decision as reported by the server. At the same time, the ministry wants to invite a wider professional public to discuss where NG should be headed.