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Dr. Jill Deupi and the Lowe Art Museum

Introduction to Jill Deupi. 6:01 min. Interview: Raymond Elman. Photo: Nick Garcia. Video Editing: Andrea Jimenez. Music: Carmen Cicero. Recorded via Zoom: 9/17/2020, Miami, FL.

DR. JILL DEUPI is the Beaux Arts Director and Chief Curator of the University of Miami’s Lowe Art Museum. Prior to assuming this position in 2014, Dr. Deupi was Director and Chief Curator of University Museums at Fairfield University, where she was also an Assistant Professor of Art History. She received her B.A. from Mount Holyoke College and her J.D. from American University’s Washington College of Law, graduating summa cum laude. Dr. Deupi holds both an M.A. and a Ph.D. in art history from the University of London’s Birkbeck College and the University of Virginia, respectively. A Rome Prize recipient, Dr. Deupi wrote her doctoral dissertation on art and cultural politics in 18th-century Naples. Her prior museum experience includes work at the Royal Academy of Arts, the Art Institute of Chicago, the Snite Museum of Art, the National Gallery (Washington, D.C.), and the Wallace Collection. Dr. Deupi is a Fellow of the American Academy in Rome, the Leading Change Institute, and the Getty Leadership Institute. In addition to her service on AAMG’s Board, she is a member of the Association of Art Museum Directors, the American Alliance of Museums, ArtTable, the College Art Association (on whose Museum Committee she serves), and the International Women’s Forum.

The videos below were recorded via Zoom, are organized by success factor, and run between 30 seconds and 5 minutes. Click on any video. You must be connected to the Internet to view the videos.

EXPOSURE TO BROAD INFLUENCES: 3:16 min.

Where did you grow up and what is your earliest memory of art of any discipline?

SERENDIPITY: 1:03 min.

Do you have any memory of living in the artic when you were a toddler?

CRITICAL THINKING: 1:45 min.

You are the first person to introduce me to the concept of the “Imposter Syndrome.”

EXPOSURE TO BROAD INFLUENCES: 4:30 min.

Who have been your role models and influencers?

COMMUNITY VALUES: 1:26 min.

You and your husband, architect Victor Deupi, have lived in many places both here and abroad and have a very cosmopolitan outlook. Does Miami seem too small to you?

COMMUNITY VALUES: 0:53 sec.

People engaged in the arts in Miami live all over the map. The art institutions are the major locations where people in the arts can coalesce.

SEIZES OPPORTUNITIES: 1:10 min.

While Miami is far flung, it still has a smaller town feeling in the sense that it’s a place where one can make things happen.

CREATES A UNIQUE PERSONAL BRAND: 5:05 min.

I know this is like asking you which of your kids is your favorite, but what are a few of your favorite Lowe Art Museum exhibitions?

CRITICAL THINKING: 2:25 min.

One of the remarkable outcomes of the demands for social justice in 2020 is that everybody, but most especially white people, has become more aware of suppressed Black history.

COLLABORATION: 2:26 min.

Tell us about the Myrna and Sheldon Palley Pavilion for Contemporary Glass and Studio Arts.

OVERCOMES CHALLENGES TO SUCCEED: 2:19 min.

Have you come up with any innovative ways to virtually engage art audiences during the pandemic that’s different from other museums?

OVERCOMES CHALLENGES TO SUCCEED: 2:04 min.

Describe a challenging assignment or situation with a successful outcome.

CRITICAL THINKING: 4:21 min.

Would you describe the reputation of the Lowe Art Museum and Miami in general as international, national, or regional?

UNDERSTANDS THE BUSINESS OF ART: 3:17 min.

In your 2014 interview with Keena Royce for ArtSpeak, you spoke of doing a “proper audience survey.” Did you ever do that survey, and what were the findings?

CRITICAL THINKING: 1:10 min.

What would the Lowe look like if you could accomplish everything you want?

OPEN TO CHANGE, FLEXIBILITY: 1:37 min.

How can Miami attract and retain talented artists?