Brady Lum, chief operating officer of the High Museum of Art, has resigned after an investigation by the governing board found roughly $600,000 was missing from the institution.
Museum leadership identified “financial irregularities” in December 2025 and shared their concerns with the Woodruff Arts Center Governing Board. The Woodruff Arts Center oversees the High Museum and Alliance Theater. The discovery led to the appointment of a special committee and an outside law firm to review the matter. Investigators concluded that about $600,000 had been stolen and traced the irregularities directly to Lum.
Subsequently, Lum was placed on administrative leave. The COO later resigned from his role. The governing board has asked the law firm leading the review to refer the case to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia for possible criminal prosecution.
In a statement, a museum spokesperson said the organization engaged an independent forensic auditor and other experts to strengthen financial controls. While the Woodruff Arts Center offers transparency by publishing its yearly financials, the organization has not disclosed information past May 2025 on its website. They do not expect the matter to harm the museum’s overall finances or operations, Fox 5 reported.
“We do not anticipate any impact on the High Museum or the Woodruff Arts Center’s financial stability or operations,” a spokesperson for the Woodruff Arts Center said. “We’ve engaged an independent forensic auditor and other experts to review this matter and identify improvements to strengthen the High Museum and Woodruff Arts Center’s processes.”
The Woodruff Arts Center has not released a copy of the investigation report, despite reported evidence, federal authorities have not yet announced whether charges against Lum will be filed. Details about how or when the funds were misappropriated were not disclosed.
The High Museum of Art, one of the South’s leading visual arts institutions, draws audiences from around the region with its collection and exhibitions. Officials have said they plan to maintain transparency as the situation develops.
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