Art Institute of Chicago President on Leave After Stripping on Plane
The museum confirmed that James Rondeau is currently under investigation.
Art Institute of Chicago (AIC) President and Director James Rondeau has taken a voluntary leave of absence amid an ongoing investigation into accusations of stripping in public while aboard a flight to Germany last month.
Rondeau, who has helmed the museum since 2016, was allegedly under the influence of alcohol and prescription medication, as first reported by CBS News. Sources told the news outlet that the incident happened on April 18 during an overnight United Airlines flight from Chicago to Munich.
After the plane landed, police officers were called to the scene in response to reports that a passenger had taken off his clothes.
"The Art Institute takes this very seriously and has opened an independent investigation into the incident to gather all available information," an AIC spokesperson said in a statement.
In response to Hyperallergic's inquiry, German police confirmed an incident aboard UA Flight 953 from Chicago to Munich involving a United States citizen. Citing German law, police said they could not confirm the name of the passenger.
“Prior to landing about 9am local time the cockpit crew reported an unruly passenger on board who stripped off his clothes,” police said. “After arrival police started investigations on the matter. Due to the influence of medicine a 55 [year-old] male suspect faced an exceptional psychological situation.”
United Airlines declined to comment. Rondeau has not yet responded to Hyperallergic’s inquiry.
Founded in 1879 as the Chicago Academy of Fine Arts, the AIC is one of the United States's most internationally recognizable arts museums, known for its permanent collection of more than 300,000 works, which began with a specific focus on avant-garde European painting and sculpture, and for its affiliated arts institution, the School of the Art Institute of Chicago.
Rondeau, who makes more than $1 million a year in salary (as of 2023), has been with the museum for nearly three decades. He first joined the AIC in 1998 as an associate curator of contemporary art before moving into a curator position of Modern and Contemporary Art in 2004.
