Serota Faces Opposition

LONDON—Nicholas Serota's contract is up for renewal, but opposition is gathering against the longstanding Tate director.

His third seven-year term at the helm of the institution ends next year, and the trustees' decision as to whether he will be reappointed is due in August.

Meanwhile, a campaign to have him removed is gathering momentum, reports the Observer, with a petition on the Downing Street Web site calling for Prime Minister Gordon Brown to block Serota's appointment should it go through.

One signer, the crotchety arts writer Bevis Hillier, who is currently working on a book about art called Bad Taste, said of Serota, "I've nothing personal against him, but I think he has been a ruinous figure. I feel he is part of a sort of conspiracy by which the art world has been taken over by big money for dealers, artists and critics."