Michel Draguet has resigned as director of the Royal Museums of Fine Arts in Belgium following accusations of inappropriate behaviour.
In December last year six current and former employees criticised the art historian. Among the accusations made was that he was ‘flirty’ with colleagues, failed to use inclusive language and was insulting – one unnamed source claimed that he once described a former communication manager as having ‘the intelligence of a vagina’.
A further thirty-one members of staff have signed an open letter against Draguet. At a subsequent meeting between trade unions and museums management this week, the Brussels Times reports, it was agreed that Draguet would quit.
Draguet denies the accusations levelled at him and an investigation by the Belgium Science Policy Office (BELSPO) found ‘no material evidence of the accusations of racism, homophobia or sexism reported in the press’.
Arnaud Vajda, chairman of the executive committee of BELSPO, said: ‘Although the last few months have been difficult, both for the staff of the Royal Museums and for Michel himself, I would like to point out that the evaluation process, which I completed on March 23, did not provide any material evidence of the accusations of racism, homophobia or sexism reported in the press. Now that this chapter has been closed, I am pleased to be able to rely on Michel Draguet’s expertise for the implementation of the many projects offered by the department’s strategic plan, particularly in the area of valorization of federal heritage.’
Draguet has been with the public museums group since 2005 and oversaw the creation of the Magritte Museum and the Fin-de-Siècle Museum.
