MONTREAL.- The Montreal Museum of Fine Arts announced two new appointments within the Board of Trustees. Jacques Parisien takes over the reins from Brian M. Levitt to become the thirty-second Museum President. Mr. Levitt wishes to pass the torch at a key moment in the MMFA’s history, as the Museum prepares to inaugurate the Michal and Renata Hornstein Pavilion for Peace – International Art and Education in just a few months, just as his predecessor Bernard Lamarre did before the opening of the Claire and Marc Bourgie Pavilion. Mr. Levitt will continue to sit on the Museum’s Board of Trustees as Honorary President.

Pierre Bourgie, a major MMFA patron, will succeed the late Michal Hornstein as Museum Vice-president. Mr. Bourgie has been very involved with the Museum since 2007 for the Claire and Marc Bourgie Pavilion and the Bourgie Concert Hall, which were inaugurated in 2011. He is also the founding president of the Arte Musica Foundation in residence at the MMFA.

Jacques Parisien, new Museum President and committed Montrealer
Jacques Parisien becomes the MMFA’s new President on June 1, 2016. A director and consultant with several Canadian companies, he is president of Power Communications and sits on the board of Square Victoria/Gesca, a Power Corporation company that publishes La Presse. He also sits on the boards of IGM Financial, a leading Canadian public company involved in asset management; Attraction Media, a major private company that produces content for the Canadian entertainment industry; Stingray Digital, an international public company, digital music provider to cable and satellite distribution companies; and The Guarantee Company of North America. He also acts as an advisor to Cossette, a major independent Canadian advertising agency.

A dedicated and committed Montrealer, Jacques Parisien is involved in many social and community activities. He chairs the board of the Fondation de l’Institut de tourisme et d’hôtellerie de Montréal (FITHQ) and sits on the board of directors of the Institut de tourisme et d’hôtellerie de Montréal (ITHQ). He was chairman of the board of Tourisme Montréal for several years, as well as the Board of Trade of Metropolitan Montreal (2001-2002) and Pointe-à-Callière, the Montréal Museum of Archaeology and History. He currently sits on the board of the Université de Montréal’s Institute for Research in Immunology and Cancer (IRIC). Mr. Parisien has been a member of the MMFA’s Board of Trustees since 2014.

“I am very honoured to take over the helm from Brian Levitt, who accomplished remarkable work during the past eight years as Chairman of the MMFA’s Board, and I am delighted that he will remain an active Museum Trustee. I am very enthusiastic about taking on this new challenge. In conjunction with the Museum team and Board of Trustees, I will work on strengthening the MMFA’s financial sustainability, ensuring its growth and enriching its major encyclopedic collection. But above all, my ultimate goal is to pursue the vision of Nathalie Bondil, the Museum’s Director and Chief Curator, of a Museum of the twentyfirst century that is humanist, inclusive and open to all audiences,” explained Mr. Parisien.

Pierre Bourgie, major Museum patron, is appointed Vice-president
Pierre Bourgie, an MMFA Trustee since 2009, has been named Vice-president of the MMFA, a position that was recently left vacant following the death of Michal Hornstein. Pierre Bourgie is a Montrealer who is actively involved in a number of economic, cultural and community organizations. He is president of the investment firms Société Financière Bourgie and Ipso Facto and a board member of major companies and financial institutions, including Saputo. He has served as a director of the National Bank of Canada, HydroQuébec and the Groupe Canam. He also chaired the board of the Montreal daily Le Devoir and the Musée d’art contemporain de Montréal.

Mr. Bourgie has received many awards in recognition of his major contribution to society and culture. He is an Officer of the Ordre national du Québec and received the Prix Arts-Affaires in 2012 for his contribution to the MMFA’s development. He was named a member of the Académie des grands Montréalais in 2013, the same year he chaired the Groupe de travail sur la philanthropie culturelle with the aim of improving the funding of cultural organizations in Quebec. This group proposed initiatives to the government aimed at increasing the contribution of individuals and companies to culture. Jacques Parisien was also a member of this task force.

A discerning art collector and a lover of classical music, Mr. Bourgie and his family are the largest donors of private funds to the MMFA over the past few years. Through the support of this great Quebec patron and his family, the MMFA was able to build the Claire and Marc Bourgie Pavilion of Quebec and Canadian Art in 2011. He brought music to the Museum by transforming the nave of the Erskine and American Church into a professional concert hall: Bourgie Hall is now launching its fifth season; it presents two hundred concerts and musical activities each year that are attended by 50,000 spectators. Mr. Bourgie is the founding president of the Arte Musica Foundation, which carries out all the programming for the concert hall. The Foundation has been in residence at the Museum since 2008.

“My involvement in Museum life for over eight years now has given me the opportunity to observe firsthand the great strides made by this institution and gain an appreciation for its innovative and highly efficient team. I have a real passion for art and artists, especially the visual arts and music. I want to contribute more to the cause of art and culture and I’m proud to become involved as Vice-president in order to contribute to the preservation of the MMFA’s collection, an incredibly rich cultural heritage, and to join a long line of Museum Vice-presidents who, over the past 156 years, have influenced the destiny of this major museum of international calibre.”

Brian M. Levitt, remains an active Museum Trustee after a remarkable mandate as Chairman of the Museum’s Board of Trustees
A Museum Trustee since 1996, Brian M. Levitt has demonstrated his commitment to the Museum’s growth as a Trustee and Co-president of the 1998-2002 major fundraising campaign. Mr. Levitt explained: “On the eve of the inauguration of the Michal and Renata Hornstein Pavilion for Peace, I would like hand over the reins to Jacques Parisien, who was named to the Board in 2014, so that he can pursue the Museum’s growth with his new plans.” He concluded, “The Montreal Museum of Fine Arts is a wonderful institution. I am proud to be a part of this passionate and committed community. I would like to thank the Museum Trustees for their ongoing support. I will remain very involved with the Museum as there is still a great deal to be done to ensure its financial sustainability.”

Mr. Levitt will continue his valued involvement with the Museum, especially the Museum Foundation, which he has been very involved with developing in order to increase the Museum’s private funding, which is essential to its growth