what does "artistic direction"mean? does it mean "director"?
Right away, DeMille thought it wise to make up with Mitchell Leisen. When the great man put The King of Kings into production, he reorganized his staff and restored Leisen as head of the costume department, while leaving the artistic direction to Iribe.

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from wiki:  The artistic director of a theatre is similar to the music director of a symphony, the primary person responsible for planning a theatre's season. The artistic director's responsibilities can include but are not limited to choosing the material staged in a season, the hiring of creative/production personnel (such as directors), and other theatre management tasks." http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Artistic_director