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interview | 17 INSIGHT: STAN TRECKER Montserrat College of Art President Stan Trecker holds an MFA in photography and printmaking from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, an MBA from Indiana University, a BFA from Columbia College and a BS in Business Administration from Miami University. Trecker’s 11-year tenure as Executive Director of the Photographic Resource Center (1980-1991) was marked by tremendous growth for the organization and the photography community including a successful capital campaign that resulted, among other benefits, in the development of the PRC’s first comprehensive facility. Trecker left the PRC to serve as the Art Institute of <strong>Boston</strong>’s President—a post he held until he joined Montserrat in 2003. He lives in Brookline with his wife, Anne, and daughter. He is also the father of two grown daughters. Why photography I started my career in banking. I had an MBA and was working for a large bank in Chicago. Coincidentally, one of my banking colleagues was an active photographer and had a darkroom in her home. She introduced me to photography. I bought a camera and decided to take a course at Columbia College. Eventually, I decided that I didn’t want a long term banking career. At the same time, my teacher was organizing a semester class in Oaxaca, Mexico. I jumped at the opportunity. For six months, all I did was take pictures, talk to other people about photography, and get to know a new culture. It was life changing. After I entered the graduate program at the Art Institute of Chicago. During those years, I was trying to figure out what I could do to make a living. I started to realize that there were arts institutions that needed people with business skills. I got a job as the business manager of MoMing Dance and Arts Center in Chicago, which was doing cutting edge work, mostly in contemporary dance. It allowed me to see and be around people who were creating new work all of the time. After I got my degree, I started looking around the country at photo organizations that might need my skills. There were two jobs. One of them was the Director of the PRC, and the other was the Director of San Francisco Camerawork. I applied for both, and I was offered both. One of my teachers, Joyce Neimanas, told me that she had great respect for the people at the PRC. I interviewed and liked it. That was really why I came. Shortly after you arrived, the PRC began growing dramatically. Why The biggest thing that sparked the PRC to grow and be more visible were the lectures. We brought in people like Arnold Newman, John Szarkowski, Bill Wegman, David Hockney to [<strong>Boston</strong> University’s Morse Auditorium] at least once a month. Even the most casual person interested in photography could get excited about hearing Hockney or Wegman speak. It gave the institution a bigger presence. Its success allowed us to think about a new space, a better space, a larger space, a library, an exhibition space, and gave us the wherewithal to attract some new Board members who had significant wealth themselves or who could raise money. When I came on as Director, the Board was wonderful in its knowledge and commitment to photography. Carl Chiarenza, Bart Parker, and Jim Stone and others were absolutely dedicated to the PRC and to photography. However, there wasn’t a whole lot of business experience and fund raising capacity involved [on the Board]. Then John Parker, because of Olivia [Parker] and Jack Naylor jumped in. They enjoyed people like Don Perrin, who was one of the few non-artists on the board, and brought a real professionalism to the board that was new to the institution. John worked his way into being the President of the Board, pretty rapidly. When we started thinking about a capital campaign, John and Jack were the ones that knew how to it. What was your crowning achievement at the PRC Leading organizations like [the PRC] is a labor of love. However, I tend to look back at those years as some of the best that I have had in my career because it was exciting. Anita Douthat, who came on as the Curator when we built the new space [602 Commonwealth Avenue] was absolutely dynamic in what she wanted to do, and did programming that helped set the PRC apart. What a wonderful curator! The building and opening of the space, and the programming that started to build from there, were the best moments. It was really a wonderful time for the organization. What was your most challenging moment The later years, 88, 89, when federal and state funding started to dry up. The state was going through its fiscal cycle, and the NEA was facing censorship pressures. A lot of institutions, not just the PRC, started to level off. Some places closed. Taking an organization and starting to scale it back was really tough. Stan Trecker photographed by Terrence Morash. The institution never had an endowment. It was raising money year to year to survive, still does, which makes [the organization] very venerable to the vagaries of outside forces. Those were the toughest times. What’s going on at Montserrat We are exploring exciting possibilities for new facilities and have initiated the College’s first-ever multi year fund raising campaign, to which our supporters are really responding. We have a show up right now called Plastic Princess: Barbie as Art (through <strong>February</strong> 11). Our curator, Leonie Bradbury put together this show of artists around the country who use Barbie as a theme in their art. It talks about women’s’ issues and all sorts of really pretty interesting stuff. It’s a terrific show and getting a lot of public attention. What do you think about the PRC’s direction right now The shows are still really wonderful and I love the way that you are using the web to build audience for what you are doing. I would give attention to audience building activities, like lectures—allowing you to introduce yourself to new supporters and to get the name out there. The PRC has a lot of respect in the <strong>Boston</strong> community. I continue to hear that. You have a good base to build on. Thank you. Thank you. Insight presents interviews with photography luminaries from the New England photography community. To suggest individuals to be interviews in future issues, please email prc@bu.edu.
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