Former Cleveland Museum Of Art Director Evan Hopkins Turner Dies

Former director of the Cleveland Museum of Art Evan Hopkins Turner has died.   

Honored by the Cleveland Arts Prize in 1991, Turner increased the museum’s contemporary art holdings and expanded its photography collection.

Current museum director William Griswold said in a written statement Wednesday, “Evan Turner laid the foundation for many of the innovative programs, community engagement efforts and strategic initiatives that we offer today.”

During Turner’s tenure, from 1983-93, the museum increased its attendance, hosted blockbuster exhibitions and celebrated its 75 ^th anniversary.

Citing 19 ^th-century American painter William Sidney Mount's “The Power of Music” as an example, Griswold said Turner added significant works to the permanent collection and “enhanced the museum’s reputation worldwide.”

William Sidney Mount's “The Power of Music,” oil on canvas [Cleveland Museum of Art]

The Harvard-educated leader succeeded Sherman E. Lee as the museum’s fourth director. Prior to CMA, Turner directed the Philadelphia Museum of Art for 14 years.

According to the Philadelphia Inquirer, Turner died at home earlier this month from congestive heart failure at age 93.