Gaëtane Verna

Gaëtane Verna, born on May twenty-ninth, nineteen sixty-five, in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo, to Haitian parents, is a distinguished Canadian museum curator and arts administrator. At the tender age of two, her family relocated to Canada, where she would later carve out a significant career in the arts.

Verna's academic credentials are impressive; she holds a master's degree and a Master's of Advanced Studies from the prestigious Paris 1 Panthéon Sorbonne University. Additionally, she earned an international heritage administration and conservation diploma from the École Nationale du Patrimoine de Paris. Her expertise has led her to teach at the Department of Art History at Bishop's University in Sherbrooke and at the Université du Québec à Montréal.

Her professional journey includes a notable tenure as curator at the Foreman Gallery of Bishop's University from nineteen ninety-eight to two thousand six. Following this, she served as the executive director and Chief Curator of the Musée d'art de Joliette from two thousand six to two thousand twelve. In two thousand twelve, she made history as the first woman to become the Director and artistic director of The Power Plant Contemporary Art Gallery in Toronto, Ontario.

Throughout her career, Verna has collaborated with a diverse array of artists, including Terry Adkins, John Akomfrah, and Bill Viola, among others. In two thousand twenty-two, she was appointed the executive director of the Wexner Center for the Arts at The Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio, further solidifying her impact on the contemporary art scene.