ROCKLAND – Lora Urbanelli, the executive director of the Farnsworth Art Museum since January 2006, has stepped down to assume the directorship of the Montclair Art Museum in Montclair, N.J.

Urbanelli will remain at the Farnsworth until the end of December, at which time chief curator Michael Komanecky will take over as the museum’s interim director.

For Urbanelli, the decision to move on was a tough one, but also one she felt she couldn’t turn down considering her background.

A Philadelphia native who grew up in the southern part of New Jersey, Urbanelli still has close family in the state. She is also a graduate of Rutgers University, which is the state university of New Jersey.

Montclair is about a 11/2-hour drive from the area in which her family lives.

“It was just one of those opportunities that was hard to resist,” Urbanelli said. “For me it was a real homecoming. It’s really wonderful – you think you follow the jobs that are good for you and are good advancement for you, [but] I never expected to work in my home region. I found it really hard to say no.”

Urbanelli led the Farnsworth through a three-year strategic planning process, the goals of which were to improve community relations, rebuild staff and reinvigorate programming exhibitions and educational programming. The museum, which is one of the largest in Maine and is highly regarded nationally, celebrated its 60th anniversary this year.

“I came really with a mandate to reconnect the museum deeply to its community, and I really feel like there’s a lot we accomplished,” she said. “We wanted to build a sense that the Farnsworth cares about the community around it, and meets the needs of its community members, and I feel we’re getting there.”

During Urbanelli’s time as executive director, the museum received a $1 million anonymous donation to the endowment in 2007, which was matched by the museum’s board of trustees this year. The Farnsworth also received a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts to support an island outreach program, two foundation grants for a redesign of the museum’s Web site, and a foundation grant to underwrite a two-year program for busing Maine schoolchildren to the museum.

The Farnsworth received the Maine Governor’s Tourism Award in 2007.

“This is a personal career decision for Lora and we are excited for her,” Farnsworth board President Richard Aroneau said in a release. “Although we are sad to see her go, we are grateful that she leaves behind a highly professional and united senior management team that has the strength and skill to guide the museum through a transition period while the board conducts a careful and thorough search for a new director.”

Exhibition plans for the Farnsworth in 2009 include a major retrospective of the work of Vinalhaven resident Robert Indiana and an examination of the Seven Deadly Sins group of paintings by Jamie Wyeth.

Urbanelli took over the Farnsworth position from Christopher Crosman, who left in May 2005. She had been assistant director of the Rhode Island School of Design in Providence and earlier had worked in the department of prints, drawings and photographs at Yale University Art Gallery.

Komanecky will remain as chief curator while serving as interim director for 2009. In his curatorial role Komanecky will continue to put together the Indiana show, which Urbanelli is confident he can do in addition to his new responsibilities.

“He’s really great,” she said. “He’s very, very experienced in museum work. … He feels he can hold down both important positions for that year, and he really wants to continue the success we’ve built here.”

Urbanelli herself was a frequent visitor to Maine before joining the Farnsworth. She plans to return often.

“We love Maine,” said the Camden resident. “… We’ll be back a lot.”

jbloch@bangordailynews.net

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