Oolite Arts has announced a search for a new president and CEO, following the news that its president and CEO, Dennis Scholl, is stepping down after six years at the helm.
During his time with the organization, Scholl has led its transformation into one of Florida’s largest artist support organizations and was the driving force behind Oolite's planned expansion that will move it from Miami Beach to a state-of-the art campus in Little River designed by renowned Spanish firm Barozzi Veiga. Originally scheduled to open in 2024, the delayed project is now scheduled to break ground this fall and open in 2025.
“It’s been a joy to spend six years helping the artists I revere in the 305 and to be a part of elevating their practices in so many ways,” Scholl said in a written statement. “The greatest thing about Oolite Arts is that it continues to look for ways, in the words of the organization’s founder Ellie Schneiderman,
(Oolite Arts)
Architectural renderings of Oolite Arts' future $30 million home in Little River, a project Dennis Scholl helped lead.
‘to help artists help themselves.’ I’m thankful to the board for their leadership and for this enormous opportunity.”
Before joining Oolite Arts, Scholl served as a vice president at the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, where he oversaw the foundation’s national arts program, with grants to cultural organizations totaling close to $200 million.
Personally, Scholl has created a series of initiatives dedicated to building the contemporary art collections of major museums and has served on the boards and executive committees of the Aspen Art Museum, Museum of Contemporary Art North Miami and the Pérez Art Museum, among others.
An art collector and award-winning filmmaker and visual artist in his own right, Scholl will now dedicate his time to creating, with upcoming solos exhibitions planned in France and the United Kingdom.