Message from the Director

We've been talking about the "ripple effect" lately. How can we make an impact that extends beyond the immediate project?

A prime example of this is our Buy-a-Busload of Kids program, which underwrites transportation costs of K-12 students within a 100-mile radius of Pullman. During our recent exhibition, Chris Jordan's Running the Numbers, literally thousands of school kids took advantage of that program, including the entire Lincoln Middle School in Pullman, WA. As a result, those students have a common experience and point of reference when they begin to consider the ramifications of the many profound environmental and social issues brought forth in Jordan's photographs.

It seems simple - it only costs about $75-100 for a bus - but without funding transportation, many of those students would not have visited the exhibition or set foot on the WSU campus. A big shout-out needs to go to WSU professor Eugene Rosa, who last year established an endowment that provides annual funds for the program. Gene's generosity doesn't cover the full demand of any given year, but it is a solid base that assures Palouse-area youth the opportunity to encounter important works of art - in perpetuity.

Another way of creating a ripple effect is through collaborative efforts with other departments and institutions. How can we engage with others so that our resources are maximized - and so each partner is made stronger?

We do this by traveling our exhibitions to other museums; by co-publishing our books so they are distributed around the world; and by partnering with other departments on campus to both extend their program and enhance our own. An example of such a collaboration is a new, multi-faceted series of exhibitions and lectures dealing with art and architecture. The first one opens this May, and will showcase models and plans by WSU's third year architecture class, depicting scenarios for an expansion of the Museum of Art. The class benefits from taking on a "real-world" problem, further benefits by having their work on public display, and the Museum benefits by seeing a range of ideas and possibilities for our desired expansion. The ultimate ripple effect of that, of course, will be to actually undertake the expansion so we can provide even greater value to our community!

In these times when dollars are stretched thin, we hope you appreciate our efforts and that you will consider pitching in to help us maintain the level of excellence we have come to expect.

Chris Bruce

Director

Chris Jordan: Running the Numbers
closed on April 4. Nearly seven thousand people experienced this world-class exhibition while it was at the Museum of Art. The exhibition is now headed to the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History where it will be on exhibit May 15 - September 11.

Did you know the average American eats 22 pounds of candy a year? When we found this out we wanted to know how much candy was in 22 pounds. We bought 22 pounds of candy, counted it up, and let people guess how many pieces they thought were in the box.

The most popular guess was 1,000 pieces but as it turns out 22 pounds of candy, at least the candy we bought, is equal to 1,706 pieces!

If you haven't purchased your Chris Jordan: Running the Numbers book contact the Museum of Art at 509-335-1910 to order yours today.

Don't forget our hours have changed for the summer. The gallery is now open Tuesday - Saturday Noon - 4 p.m.

The Buy-a-Busload program has increased 1000% since it began 8 years ago! This means more students are able to come to the Museum of Art thanks to generous donations to the Buy-a-Busload program.

Are you interested in becoming a Docent? Contact the Museum of Art at 509-335-1910.

Museum Info

Museum Hours
Monday - Saturday
10 a.m. - 4 p.m.
Thursday open until 7 p.m.
Closed Sunday

Summer Gallery Hours
Tuesday - Saturday
Noon - 4 p.m.
Closed Sunday & Monday

Office Hours
Monday - Friday
8 a.m. - 5 p.m.

Location
Wilson Road across from Martin Stadium in the Fine Arts Center

Contact Us
Phone: (509) 335-1910
Fax: (509) 335-1908

Website

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Curator's Choice - Permanent Collection and New Acquisitions

May 18 - July 2, 2009

Andy Warhol, Keith Haring, unknown date

The Curator's Choice exhibit in 2009 will feature recent acquisitions as well as some classic favorites from the Museum's permanent collection. Showing work from the permanent collection not only provides an excellent opportunity to see great art but it also allows us to pay homage to the generous support we enjoy from our donors. Also featured will be design models and plans by 3rd year Architecture students ofa possible new expansion of the Museum.

Museum Events

Curator's Choice 2009
May 18 - July 2
Museum of Art/WSU

Public Reception
June 6, 2 p.m.
Museum of Art/WSU
will feature Summer Solstice Quintet

Jazz Northwest Summer Concert
June 9, Noon
Museum of Art/WSU

Fine Arts Faculty Exhibition
August 27 - Spetember 26
Museum of Art/WSU

Master of Fine Arts Thesis Exhibition

April 10 - May 9, 2009

Master of Fine Arts graduate candidates with Butch

The Master of Fine Arts Thesis Exhibition just wrapped up. It was a great show! This year's group of candidates included: Brad Dinsmore, Lauren McCleary, Heather Losey McGeachy, Dustin Price and Tobias Walther.

Photography by Don Normark: Imminent Domain

October 1 - December 19, 2009

In 1948, inspired by the work of photographer Cartier Bresson, and the emerging work of photo-journalist W. Eugene Smith, Don Normark went searching for subject matter other than the advertising assignments given by his school, The Art Center, in Los Angeles. He happened upon Chavez Ravine, an area of three Mexican-American neighborhoods less than two miles from L.A. City Hall. He felt at one with the lively simplicity of these communities that offered a retreat from the gritty city of L.A. He befriended individuals as he photographed them faces focused on their embrace of daily life-finding sweet, empathic moments of expression that monumentalized their resilient and timeless existence. The year after Normark made his photographs, the city, using the power of Eminent Domain, evicted all residents of the ravine to make way for low-cost housing. This was the McCarthy era. The next city council thought that low-cost housing sounded like creeping Socialism, and canceled the housing contracts. They gave the land, instead, to Walter O'Malley, who was seeking a new home for his Brooklyn Dodgers, the stadium that now occupies the land. The people of the ravine still meet once a year for an annual dance and picnic, to salute their lost communities, and to honor their lives. Normark's photographs of the once beautiful Ravine and its' people, stand as a testament to our propensity to carelessly destroy things we should embrace.