Art museum chosen to receive donation
Fifty contemporary pieces of art are being donated to the Nora Eccles Harrison Museum of Art at USU by the Vogal family through the National Gallery of Art.
Victoria Berry, executive director and chief curator of the Nora Eccles Harrison Museum, said Dorothy and Herbert Vogal are donating art to all 50 states. She said the project is called Fifty Works for Fifty States. She said they wanted other people to be able to see the art and that is why this project is taking place.
Berry said the Vogals are giving 2,500 pieces of art out of the 4,000 pieces they have in their collection. She said the National Gallery of Art proposed the Fifty Works for Fifty States idea and the Vogals accepted it. She also said the National Gallery of Art will be funding the project. This project means good things for the museum, she said.
“One of the many benefits of receiving this gift at our museum is that we will be more noticed,” Berry said.
Berry said the art is a collection of paintings, sculptures, drawings and prints of all sizes. The art is contemporary and was created between the 1960s to the present day by artists living mostly in New York. Berry said she is excited that art from New York will be shown at the museum because in the past, the Nora Eccles Harrison Museum has usually only shown art from the western half the United States.
“Our audience can come here to see this work from New York that you don’t typically see in Utah. The artwork is very interesting to look at. It’s not about recognizable subjects; it’s more about ideas or the expression of ideas,” she said.
Berry said she is unsure when the artwork will arrive at USU, but on Nov. 16 the official announcement will be released and she will receive the artwork at some point after that. She said she was told to expect the artwork sometime in 2009.
The Vogals had collected these pieces of art for many years and just collected what they liked, Berry said. She said the Vogals hung the art everywhere in their apartment, including the ceilings, until they decided to donate some of it to the National Gallery of Art. They often bought the art from unknown artists and had a unique taste for what they liked, she said.
“Now the artists are well-known and the art is definitely worthy of being looked at. Their collection has that quality that’s engaging. It’s very interesting, conceptual work,” Berry said.
The Nora Eccles Harrison Museum has been open since 1982 and usually features contemporary artwork, Berry said. She said about 25,000 people visit the museum yearly.
Megan Platt, graduate student studying statistics, said she has never been to the Nora Eccles Harrison Museum before because it’s never been brought to her attention.
She said, “It sounds interesting to me. I’d have to be told more about the new artwork more and if it was advertised somewhere I would then remember and I would probably go. I should go, I’ve just never taken the time to.”
Berry said she hopes the new collection will draw more students like Platt to the museum.
“We hope that students will have an interest and will come and see the Vogal collection when it gets here, and I hope they also come and see our permanent collection. It’s still free to come, and they can come whenever. It’s a great place to get away from the hectic life we have here on campus,” she said.
The museum is open Tuesday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Saturday from 12 p.m. to 4 p.m.
–s.k.b@aggiemail.usu.edu
Museum worker Kaari Rowberry looks at a piece of art in the Nora Eccles Harrison Museum. The museum’s staff hopes the 50 donated pieces from the Vogal collection will attract new visitors to the museum. (Tyler Larson)