For the second time in as many days, this blog has the unhappy task of bringing news of the death of one of our authors. This one seems especially cruel: The art historian Amy Brandt, at the age of only 37, after what the Chrysler Museum of Art of Norfolk, Va., described as “a valiant health struggle.” Brandt was the McKinnon Curator of Modern and Contemporary Art at the Chrysler from the time of its creation, in 2011, until her death, and an authority on contemporary art. Her lone book, Interplay: Neoconceptual Art of the 1980s, reconsidered and rethought a critical group of artists that included Sherrie Levine, Philip Taaffe, and Jeff Koons.
“A bright light has been extinguished far too early,” Erik Neil, the Chrysler’s director, said. “The Chrysler will miss her innovative spirit, determination, and passion for art.”
Brandt leaves her husband, David Arthur, and a young daughter, Emma. A memorial service is planned for June 2. She will be missed.