the 2013 federal budget sequestration closed one of the museum's permanent exhibitions. Cole retired in March 2017 and was succeeded by British filmmaker and curator Gus Casely-Hayford in February 2018. Reviewers had criticized the National Mall building's architecture, particularly its lack of natural light. The museum was scheduled for remodeling as part of the Smithsonian's South Mall project starting in 2014, but plans were subsequently scaled back. Ngaire Blankenberg was named director of the museum in July 2021, succeeding Casely-Hayford after his March 2020 departure. Before becoming director, Blankenberg worked extensively as a consultant for museums & cultural institutions on issues including collection decolonization and public engagement. Administration As of the late 2000s, The Washington Post wrote that the museum struggled with low attendance, modest budget, concealed location, and leadership turnovers. Thirty years after joining the Smithsonian, the museum remains one of the smallest museums in the complex, with 213,000 visitors in 2016about half of the 2009 count and less than one percent of the 28 million annual Smithsonian visitors. This is due, in part, to its location, which is hidden from the National Mall by the original Smithsonian Institution Building, known as the Castle. Visitor numbers have fluctuated between 200,000 and 400,000 since the 2000s, and in the mid-2000s were comparable with its underground neighbor museum, the Sackler Gallery. The museum's annual budget has fluctuated from $4.3 million (late 1990s) to $6 million (mid-2000s), and was $5 million in 2016. By comparison, the museum had a 34-person staff in 2016, down from 48 in the late 1990s. Like many other museums in the 2000s, the institute has sought private funding and endowments. It trailed behind other Smithsonian entities in fundraising campaigns, into which the museum was expected to pay about $2.1 million. In late 2016, the museum held its first annual African Arts Awards Dinner for over 500 guests. Architecture The museum's National Mall building construction began in mid-1983. The project, which also included the Sackler Gallery for the Smithsonian's Asian art, created 368,000 square feet of exhibition space at the cost of $73.2 million, half of which from the federal government. Almost all of this room was created underground so as not to affect the quadrangle's landmark Smithsonian Institution Building (the Castle), its greenery, or its view. The Smithsonian Castle hides the museum and South Quadrangle from the National Mall, which has contributed to the museum's lower attendance