Sad loss of Mark Schuster

IFACCA, 06 March 2008

We are deeply saddened by the news that Mark Schuster has passed away after a protracted battle with cancer.

Mark Schuster was at the forefront of the academic analysis of arts and cultural policy. Professor of Urban Cultural Policy at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Professor Schuster's academic contribution to the field is immeasurable. In a distinguished career stretching back to the early 1980s, he promoted academic analysis and intellectual rigour in arts and cultural policy, successfully bridging the academic and policy spheres. He served as a consultant to the Council of Europe, UNESCO, the Arts Council of Great Britain, the National Endowment for the Arts, the Canada Council for the arts, and the Department of Canadian Heritage, among many others. He served for nine years as Joint Editor of the Journal of Cultural Economics and was a member of the editorial board of the International Journal of Cultural Policy. A champion of international comparative analysis, he authored works that have become definitive international texts on arts and cultural policy, including 'Informing Cultural Policy: The Research and Information Infrastructure', released in 2002.

Mark joined IFACCA as an affiliate member in 2002. He contributed invaluably to the Federation's development in many ways, providing advice and input at meetings and participating in D’Art topics, always challenging IFACCA to maintain and develop the rigour of its research.

Mark passed away on 25 February. As both a friend and colleague, Mark will be missed by IFACCA and by everyone in the global arts and cultural policy community.

A summary of Mark Schuster’s work in cultural policy can be found at his ConnectCP profile.

More about Mark's work and life, including tributes from colleagues at MIT, can be found at the MIT website here and here.

Arturo Navarro has also written about Mark on his blog (in Spanish): Professor Mark J. Schuster, Un Hombre Sabio Y Generoso

See also Schuster left his mark on city and world, 10 March 2008, Meriden Record-Journal.

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