Bio:
Now in her 12th season at the helm of Artis—Naples, CEO and President Kathleen van Bergen continues to chart an assured and ambitious course for the organization. Her dedicated oversight is recognized throughout Southwest Florida and the greater arts community as an example of leadership geared toward prudent growth and relationship building. Gulfshore Life magazine named her one of its “2012 Men and Women of the Year,” suggesting that her title be expanded to include “collaborator-in-chief.” And in 2016, Naples Illustrated named her one of its Leading Ladies, saying, “In less than five years, van Bergen has led Naples’ premier cultural center to a new level.” Named one of Musical America’s “Top 30 Professionals of the Year” in 2019, she is described as “a woman with a mission, a vision, and a board to support both.” Since 2011, Kathleen has put her focus on balancing the multidisciplinary artistic mission with strong financial performance. From the beginning of her tenure, she has made balanced budgets and operational surpluses a priority: The balance sheet has more than doubled over the last decade and as of 2021, the organization is debt free. In 2016, Artis—Naples announced the Future–Forward Campaign for Cultural Excellence, a Master Plan to reimagine the Kimberly K. Querrey and Louis A. Simpson Cultural Campus, embrace artistic and community initiatives, substantially increase the endowment and grow the permanent collection for The Baker Museum. To date, the campaign has surpassed $80 million in these four key areas, and the Artis—Naples endowment has more than doubled in size. Under Kathleen’s leadership, a variety of challenges have been met, including those brought on by Hurricane Irma in 2017 and the subsequent repair and expansion of The Baker Museum, and the multi-year challenge posed by the COVID-19 pandemic calling for flexibility in operations, implementing protocols and nimble planning, in order to continue public offerings and rebuilding artistic and structural teams as the situation improved. Throughout these challenges, artistic excellence and growth has remained a top priority as well. The Baker Museum has greatly expanded its permanent collection with key acquisitions and presented numerous landmark exhibitions in conjunction with prominent artists and museums, including Isabelle de Borchgrave; Dale Chihuly; the National Portrait Gallery, London; and École des Beaux-Arts, Paris. In addition, under Kathleen’s leadership, the Naples Philharmonic has expanded in size and scope while reaching new levels of artistic achievement. She has also led Artis—Naples to develop numerous long-term relationships with world-renowned artists including former music director Andrey Boreyko and celebrated violinist James Ehnes as well as the Vienna Philharmonic and Berliner Philharmoniker, who both made their Florida debuts this decade. In addition, Kathleen’s vision for multidisciplinary thematic planning has allowed Artis–Naples to leverage its unique resources in order to enhance patron experiences with the visual and performing arts. Kathleen has built a dynamic leadership team at the organization, recruiting senior leaders from major organizations around the country. She has also overseen the expansion of Artis—Naples’ offerings and multidisciplinary focus, including the acquisition of the Naples International Film Festival in 2017, named to MovieMaker magazine’s 2019 list of the “25 Coolest Film Festivals in the World.” The diversity of artistic excellence and world-class programming is one reason The Wall Street Journal said Artis—Naples has ushered in “an impressive new phase” for classical music in Southwest Florida. A violinist by training, Kathleen has made music a central part of her life. Prior to joining Artis—Naples, she held several key positions, including artistic and executive director at the acclaimed Schubert Club in Saint Paul, Minnesota; vice president of artistic planning for The Philadelphia Orchestra; and vice president and director of artistic administration for the St. Louis Symphony.
