(New York, September 22, 2008)—Elyse Topalian was elected Vice President for Communications at the September 9 meeting of the Board of Trustees. Formerly Deputy Vice President and Chief Communications Officer with a mandate to publicize the Museum's exhibitions, collections, and programs, she will now supervise advertising and Museum-wide marketing initiatives as well.
Commented President Emily K. Rafferty: “Working with her superb team of public-relations professionals, Elyse has led an impressive campaign to expand visibility of the Met in all forms of media – print, broadcast, and Web – on an international scale. She has also helped raise the Museum's profile over the past two years by inaugurating of the Met Podcast series, with nearly three-quarters of a million downloads to date, and by chairing the Museum’s marketing task force. With advertising and marketing added to her set of responsibilities, I know that she will work effectively to share the many stories of the Met with the public, through traditional as well as new media.”
Elyse Topalian began her career at the Met in 1986 as a part-time researcher and writer promoting the 1987 opening of the Lila Acheson Wallace Wing for modern art. She continued in a succession of jobs including Press Officer, Special Assistant to the President, Communications Manager and Deputy Chief, and most recently Deputy Vice President and Chief Communications Officer. Prior to working at the Museum, she was U.S. editor of the Milan-based art magazine FMR and an assistant editor at Harvard University Press, and as a freelance writer she published two books for young adults as well as articles and translations on cultural topics.
Senior Vice President for External Affairs Harold Holzer, who will remain the Museum's spokesperson on policy issues, commented: “After working closely with Elyse Topalian for nearly 16 years to promote the Museum and its programs, I am thrilled that she is being recognized for her enormous contributions to the Met, and that she has been charged with still more responsibilities to expand and enhance this vital effort. I look forward to many more years of collaboration and innovation as the entire External Affairs team continues to work together to build attendance and enhance the visitor experience.”
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September 22, 2008
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