Milwaukee Art Museum has appointed a new director. Green Bay native Daniel T. Keegan replaces David Gordon, who announced last year that he would leave in 2008.
Keegan, 58, was executive director of the San Jose Museum of Art in California since 2000. He was also a founding board member of the Zero One San Jose international media art biennial in 2006.
"I've seen what has been achieved here in Milwaukee and believe this is a tremendous opportunity to work at a leading Museum of Art and with a wonderful community building on a solid and sustainable base of support," said Keegan in a statement. "It's also a great honor to come back to Wisconsin, to Milwaukee, and to direct a Museum that has established itself nationally as a cultural leader with a track record of excellent exhibitions and a great art collection.
"It's very exciting to return to a place that is near and dear to my heart. My family is here in Wisconsin and my wife, Janné, and I come back for visits each year. I look forward to becoming involved in the community and being active in the arts movement in the state."
Keegan was executive director of the Kemper Museum of Contemporary Art in Kansas City, Mo., from 1997 to 2000 and was chairman of the West Virginia Wesleyan College Department of Art from 1992 to 1997. He was an associate professor and coordinator of the Department of Art at Avila College in Kansas City, Mo.
Keegan earned a master of fine art's degree from Southern Illinois University after a bachelor of arts degree from the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay.
Born in Brooklyn, N.Y., where he lived until he was 17, Bobby received his BA-Mass Communications from UWM in 1989 and has lived in Walker's Point, Bay View, Enderis Park, South Milwaukee and on the East Side.
He has published three non-fiction books in Italy – including one about an event in Milwaukee history, which was published in the U.S. in autumn 2010. Four more books, all about Milwaukee, have been published by The History Press.
With his most recent band, The Yell Leaders, Bobby released four LPs and had a songs featured in episodes of TV's "Party of Five" and "Dawson's Creek," and films in Japan, South America and the U.S. The Yell Leaders were named the best unsigned band in their region by VH-1 as part of its Rock Across America 1998 Tour. Most recently, the band contributed tracks to a UK vinyl/CD tribute to the Redskins and collaborated on a track with Italian novelist Enrico Remmert.
He's produced three installments of the "OMCD" series of local music compilations for OnMilwaukee.com and in 2007 produced a CD of Italian music and poetry.
In 2005, he was awarded the City of Asti's (Italy) Journalism Prize for his work focusing on that area. He has also won awards from the Milwaukee Press Club.
He has be heard on 88Nine Radio Milwaukee talking about his "Urban Spelunking" series of stories, in that station's most popular podcast.
