Scottsdale Arts

Gerd Wuestemann is the new CEO of Scottsdale Arts as of March 19, 2018.

Scottsdale’s arts district was once a mecca for arts dealers and lovers nationwide. But it’s lost some of its luster in recent years as its independent galleries have struggled and there has been turnover at the highest levels of its major arts organization: Scottsdale Arts.

Scottsdale Arts is an umbrella organization — under it sits the Scottsdale Center for the Performing Arts, the Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art, and Scottsdale Public Art. That multidisciplinary approach is exactly what drew its new president to the job.

Gerd Wuestemann said he likes to think of himself more as an arts entrepreneur than an administrator. The Germany native spent the better part of the last decade building the Acadiana Center for the Arts in Louisiana. Before that, he worked in business and received his doctoral degree in musical arts from the University of Arizona.

Now, he said he is excited to take on Scottsdale Arts for a couple of major reasons.

EDITOR'S NOTE: The photo caption has been modifed to correct Gerd Wuestemann's start date with Scottsdale Arts.