There’s been a lot of news around the Philadelphia Art Museum — formerly known as the PMA and now dubbed the PhAM. 

Last month, the institution undertook a divisive brand change, switching up its name and choosing a font and logo that have been referred to as “chunky” and “dystopian.” 

Things really heated up last week, as the Art Museum’s board abruptly terminated CEO and director Sasha Suda “for cause.” This week, Suda sued the museum.

Suda’s lawyers put together a 30-page complaint that included serious allegations against the museum. The complaint was shared with the New York Times, which spoke with five anonymous trustees, who said the firing was the result of a power struggle in which the board eventually decided Suda was too inexperienced for the job.

The Art Museum has said little publicly in response to the suit. Before the complaint was made public, Mark E. Rubenstein, a member of the board’s executive committee, told the Inquirer that the investigation into Suda was “serious,” and that “a board of this stature doesn’t part ways with someone unless it’s a serious matter.”  

In a statement, the museum told The Art Newspaper, “The Art Museum is aware of the recently filed complaint against the museum, and we believe it is without merit. We will not be providing further comment at this time.” Billy Penn reached out and has not received a response.

For now, there’s just the complaint, which Billy Penn read, so you don’t have to. Here we lay out the drama, as described by Suda.

Sasha Suda comes on the scene

Suda took over as director and CEO of the Art Museum three years ago in 2022. She was 41 and came in as a progressive leader — formerly the youngest-ever CEO of Canada’s National Gallery — meant to shake things up in Philly. 

Her first day on the job was also the first day that museum staff went on strike, seeking a first contract that would raise wages and decrease the cost of health insurance.

According to the complaint, before Suda’s tenure, the museum was “deeply tarnished by scandals.” Most notoriously, the suit calls out the PMA’s former education director, Josh Helmer, who was accused of drinking on the job, giving alcohol to subordinates and sexually harassing them. Helmer resigned in 2018, and New York Times reporting on the matter led Helmer to resign from a position at the Erie Art Museum in 2020. The museum later apologized for its handling of the situation.

Former Philadelphia Art Museum Director and CEO Sasha Suda. (Emma Lee/WHYY)

There are also allegations related to PhAM’s operational struggles before Suda.

“Its connection to the community had withered,” it reads. “Philadelphia’s public schools served over 200,000 students. Yet only 8,000 visited the Museum in 2021, down from 100,000 in 2005.”

What Suda says went down

The complaint says that Suda came in expecting to right the museum’s ship — fix finances, increase morale, and add diversity and approachability to the institution. What’s more, it says, she was given “full executive authority” to do so.

Unfortunately, the complaint claims, this promise was “all lies.” 

“The Museum was riddled with drama, infighting, and dysfunction at all levels,” the complaint alleges. “Members of the Board interfered in staffing, programming, exhibition planning and even the smallest details of administration.”

The complaint claims Suda raised big bucks for the institution, slashed a $6 million deficit by two-thirds, diversified staff and opened up the Brind Center for African and African Diasporic Art. Regardless, a few board members remained unhappy.

The museum board didn’t like her style or the changes she was making, labeling her “a socialist” and “a union sympathizer,” the complaint says, and undermined her decisions.

The bitter end

The suit paints a picture of a board out to get Suda.

According to the complaint, board chair Ellen Caplan raised a “vote of confidence” for the CEO with the board — which resulted in an 8-2 vote in Suda’s favor.

The suit claims an investigation was commenced that found no wrongdoing. But when a second board vote was held, the suit says, it ended in another 8-2 tally. This time, the vote was against Suda.

The suit says the board asked her to resign, and when Suda refused they fired her “for cause.” Then, they only granted her six months of severance pay — even though her contract promised her two years. 

The complaint ends by alleging that the board has had its “officers and agents make false comments to the media that are intended to disparage, belittle, and discredit Suda.”

Suda is requesting a jury trial for what she believes was an unjust dismissal. She’s looking for financial compensation for the full two years of severance pay, damages and other relief.

And that’s where we stand at the moment. Want to read it for yourself? The full legal complaint is here.