Opening: Waiting for Omar Gatlato: Contemporary Art from Algeria and Its Diaspora

I invite you to join me at the Wallach for the opening of Waiting for Omar Gatlato: Contemporary Art from Algeria and Its Diaspora, on Friday, October 25, 2019, 6 – 8pm. It features 25 artists and an expansive examination of Algerian decolonial visual aesthetics curated by Natasha Marie Llorens, a Ph.D. candidate in Columbia University’s Department of Art History and Archaeology. The exhibition will be on view from October 26, 2019 through March 15, 2020.

After being away from New York City for nearly 20 years, I am humbled by the trust placed in me to lead the premier visual arts space at Columbia—one of the most consequential universities in one of the most culturally vibrant cities in the world. Working in partnership with talented people here at the university and in the broader community, I am personally committed to bringing to bear the full weight of my experience at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, San Diego Museum of Art, and Longwood Arts Project in the Bronx to chart new territory in creating a sense of belonging, encouraging critical conversations on issues impacting our world, and presenting timely and relevant exhibitions that help to advance the public good. Whether working with living artists or presenting historical artworks, our responsibility is to create platforms for the transmission of art’s communicative capacity.

I look forward to embarking with you on this journey and hope to see you at the opening on Friday, October 25, 2019.

Betti-Sue Hertz
Director and Chief Curator
Wallach Art Gallery