Director stepping down after restoring credibility of J. Paul Getty Museum following scandal
By APThursday, January 7, 2010
J. Paul Getty Museum director resigning in LA
LOS ANGELES — Michael Brand, director of the J. Paul Getty Museum in Los Angeles, says he is resigning.
In a statement released Thursday by the J. Paul Getty Trust, which operates the museum, Brand said he is leaving at the end of January to pursue other interests.
Brand became the museum’s director in 2005.
During his tenure, he won praise for resolving an embarrassing scandal in which the Italian government accused the Getty of possessing dozens of valuable art objects looted from its country.
Under a deal Brand helped engineer, the museum returned dozens of objects.
Italy’s National Archaeological Museum of Florence responded by entering into an agreement with the Getty, allowing it to exhibit some of its pieces.
