Art museum director works to improve visibility

In his first year as director, Nick Nelson has worked to improve the visibility and awareness of the Springfield Art Museum.

Nelson, who hits the one-year mark in August, was the featured guest this morning for Springfield Business Journal's monthly 12 People You Need to Know series at the Hilton Garden Inn.

Though most Springfieldians likely have seen the "french fries" sculpture - officially titled Sun Target - near National Avenue and Bennett Street, Nelson said the museum itself is still a mystery to some.

"The reaction that I get is, "We have an art museum?" Nelson said.

The director, his crew and the museum board want to fix that lack of awareness. The museum, which operates annually on a $1.2 million budget with only $70,000 dedicated to acquisitions, is in the process of creating new programs, a new strategic plan, hiring staff and implementing a stronger social media presence. At the heart of it all is renewed visibility, pushing the city-owned museum into the public eye to serve as an amenity drawing dollars into Springfield.

"The museum is really in a state of transition," Nelson said. "We're in the process of creating that 'new.'"

Nelson, who came to Springfield after serving as executive director of Albany Museum of Art in Albany, Ga., said his work has included managing branding and marketing changes, putting up new signage and experimenting with the way the museum tells a story through the way it presents its art exhibits. The museum board also is utilizing focus groups this summer and hopes to have a strategic plan drafted by September, Nelson said.

"Be bold, take risks but take it incrementally. I think that really sums up the last year," he said.

The work appears to be paying off. Last month, the art museum counted 4,274 visitors, nearly double that of May 2012, when attendance was 2,228. Nelson said annual attendance averages 35,000 to 40,000, and he predicts 42,000 visitors this year and 60,000 in 2014, a figure that would serve as a record high.

"When I first came on, my mantra was reach in, reach out, reach up," Nelson said. "We have to reach in and get those systems in place, the people in place, so when we connect with the community, we can do so in an effective way; we can all reach out and see the potential of the museum come to fruition."

Nelson gave a nod to Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Bentonville, Ark., saying the museum founded by Alice Walton has effectively created a viable arts presence in the Midwest. He said in the future, Springfield Art Museum pieces could be featured at Crystal Bridges, and the local museum may be able to exhibit the Arkansas facility's pieces on loan.