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John Kampfner, former Editor of the New Statesman and an
award-winning journalist and broadcaster, has been appointed Chair
of the Turner Contemporary Operating Trust.
Mr Kampfner's appointment to the part time non-executive
position, announced today by Kent County Council, is the first step
in establishing
Turner Contemporary, the Margate-based visual arts
organisation, as an independent charitable trust.
He will take up the new position immediately and begin recruiting
the full board and overseeing the transfer of operations from Kent
County Council to the Trust. This will take place alongside work on
the new £17.4m gallery for Turner Contemporary, designed by 2007
RIBA Stirling Prize Winner David Chipperfield Architects Ltd,
scheduled to begin on site in October this year with a completion
date in 2010.
John Kampfner began his career as a foreign correspondent with
the Daily Telegraph, first in Berlin where he reported on the fall
of the Wall and unification of Germany, then in Moscow at the time
of the collapse of Communism.
In the mid 1990s, he became Chief Political Correspondent at the
Financial Times and political commentator for the BBC's Today
programme. Between 2002 and 2005, John was Political Editor of the
New Statesman before becoming Editor from 2005 until 2008.
In 2002 he won the Foreign Press Association award for Film of
the Year and Journalist of the Year for a documentary on the
Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
In 2006 the British Society of Magazine Editors made him Current
Affairs Editor of the Year. John writes a fortnightly column for
the Telegraph, is a regular TV pundit on politics and foreign
affairs and is working on a new book on global wealth and
democracy.
Speaking about his appointment, John Kampfner said: "Turner
Contemporary will be one of the most exciting arts projects in the
UK, and I am thrilled to be taking up this new challenge."
KCC Cabinet Member for Community Services
Mike
Hill said: "This appointment is a milestone for Turner
Contemporary and we are confident of its future under John's
leadership. What really impressed us was his strength of conviction
for what we are striving to achieve with Turner Contemporary, his
clarity of vision for the organisation and his drive and
enthusiasm."
The appointment panel consisted of Mike Hill OBE, KCC Cabinet
Member for Community Services; Amanda Honey, KCC Managing Director
for Communities; Richard Samuel, Chief Executive of Thanet District
Council; and Sally Abbott, Director of Arts at Arts Council
England
Victoria Pomery, Director of Turner Contemporary said of the
appointment: "I am thrilled that John will be leading the Trust at
this key moment and look forward to working with
him" |