BETWEEN THE LINES: HE’D RATHER BE IN ARMENIA
by Ralph Routon
Colorado Springs Independent, CO
Aug 16 2007
Michael De Marsche’s next stop, the valley city of Yerevan, Armenia,
has mountains visible in the distance on a clear day, but much farther
away than Pikes Peak from Colorado Springs.
Michael De Marsche arrived in Colorado Springs four years ago this
month, inspired to take this city’s arts community to the Promised
Land.
He did the bricks-and-mortar part, overseeing the Fine Arts Center’s
$28 million expansion. But if that building was the fancy vehicle,
its materialistic captain decided his mission didn’t include the
actual voyage.
So he bolted. Just like that. Here today, gone tomorrow. Love "em
and leave "em. Take the money and run.
They all fit in trying to describe the sudden departure of De Marsche
as president and chief executive officer of the Colorado Springs Fine
Arts Center.
Mikey came here and used us, milking $28 million out of 350-plus
wealthy people to build the FAC’s expansion. Then he took a hike,
spitting on us as he danced out the door and hit the road.
Not to Cleveland, Chicago, Atlanta or some other high-profile city.
He’s going to Yerevan, Armenia (population 1.2 million), formerly a
part of the Soviet Union.
Mikey didn’t care about Colorado Springs. All that he cared about was
how he could take advantage of well-meaning, mostly deep-pocketed
people who believed in him. If he’d had the class and/or the nerve
to break the news in public, one can only imagine what he would have
said. Perhaps something like this:
"I really enjoyed it here, Colorado Springs, but surely you didn’t
believe we’d be working together for years to come. You’ve got your
big new museum. Now excuse me while I catch the next plane for the
Middle East. And I have to find someone to teach me Armenian."
Uh, by the way, Mikey, don’t let the door hit you on the way out.
You couldn’t leave Mayberry soon enough, could you? Oh, excuse me,
you came here from Mayberry – actually, Auburn University in Alabama.
And before that, the University of Southern Mississippi.
Colorado Springs must have seemed like cultural paradise after that.
But we digress.
De Marsche apparently never realized, or cared, that he was on the
cusp of becoming an icon here. He already had constructed the palace.
Now all he had to do was make it truly great – the unquestioned mecca
of the local arts scene.
He had control of center stage, and he was in position to do so much
more to build on his success. He could have used his momentum, and
influence, to blaze important new trails, such as more opportunities
for rising young artists, from residency programs to scholarships. He
could have helped them mentor others currently at even earlier stages
in their creative development.
He could have explored more ways to expose the best work of area
artists and those top students, while also continuing to bring in
world-class exhibits from everywhere. He could have pulled together
the arts community, even cultivating governmental support, more so
than anyone before him.
All of that was just as important as the palace. As he said in an
interview with the Indy in April, "The first step is happening. If
we don’t get bogged down in negative and silly discussions, the sky’s
the limit. But it’s going to take some vision."
De Marsche could have stayed here 10 more years, and by then, he
would have become larger than life.
Instead, now he’s waltzing off into the Armenian sunset, clicking
his heels with glee over being able to parlay Colorado Springs into
winning the Wheel of Fortune.
And now, rather than being remembered forever with reverence as a
monumental figure in the city’s arts evolution, Mikey will go down
as the well-groomed, blow-dried, snake-oil salesman who took money
over commitment, who upstaged his own grand opening, who jilted the
FAC board like a Hollywood actor looking for a new lover.
Meanwhile, it’s surprising to hear some locals, the same people who
so ardently want more of the city’s residents to support the Springs
art scene in every way, giving De Marsche a free pass. Oh, this has
been his history, they’re saying. Finish the building and move on to
the next challenge. We can’t be too shocked.
That’s bull. First, it’s one thing to build an art museum at Auburn
or Southern Miss, leaving behind the benefactors who still care about
their schools.
It’s totally different to come to Colorado Springs, to a facility
and organization without taxpayer support (like a public university,
for instance), raise nearly $30 million – in part by convincing the
donors to make their own long-term pledge of allegiance to the future
of art in the Springs, and then renege on his personal responsibility
to set an example with a commitment of his own.
De Marsche should be held to the same standard as anyone else involved
with taking the FAC to new horizons. The expansion was just the first
step. Now comes the truly rewarding part. And the president/CEO is
off to frickin’ Armenia. That’s simply nauseating.
Also, it’s condescendingly low and undiplomatic, and a slap in the
FAC’s face, for De Marsche to release his orgasmic (yes, orgasmic)
going-away letter, saying it’s his "greatest pleasure" to announce
his new appointment in Armenia. So much for the afterglow of the
FAC’s Extremely Grand Opening. Turn out the lights, the party’s over.
No "extreme regret" or "totally mixed emotions"?
In effect, he was saying something more like: "Hey, I honored you
with my presence. I never said it was real. I never said I wanted to
be buried here. I never made any promises. Adios."
It’s too late now. De Marsche is gone, taking vacation time until his
official departure of Sept. 1 – the final snub to the organization
and city that opened their arms to him.
Those Armenian drams (the currency there) obviously mean more to him
than Colorado Springs ever did. And now the FAC must rebound quickly
and find someone who truly cares, who can repair the damage, who can
reach out to members and nonmembers alike, who can come here and stay
long enough to become everything that Michael De Marsche wasn’t.
That person will have to deal with a lot of skepticism and wariness
from people who feel burned now. Hopefully the FAC board can find
the right replacement and move on from here.
But the scars won’t heal for a long, long time.