New UND art exhibit reveals once lost, under-appreciated treasures of campus

Art Jones

Document Type

News Article

Publication Date

9-2-2014

Campus Unit

College of Arts & Sciences

Abstract

University of North Dakota's new "Lost, Found, and Rescued" Art Exhibit tells the story of the art collections at UND, which until recently were sometimes neglected and/or under-appreciated as educational resources.

The Exhibit will run through Dec. 11; Tuesday and Thursday, noon - 5 p.m., and Saturday, 10 a.m. - 3 p.m., at the Empire Arts Center, 415 DeMers Avenue, downtown Grand Forks

About the exhibition:

Over the years, a number of significant art objects at UND have been lost or damaged, and in the past, art was often utilized more for decoration than for education.

Some problems of the past may have involved the public's mistaken belief that care of the University's art collection was the responsibility of the North Dakota Museum of Art, an independent museum with an art collection of its own. Although located on UND grounds, the North Dakota Museum of Art is not affiliated with the University or the UND Foundation—both of which also possess sizable art collections that until recently were being given inconsistent professional oversight.

Since the development of UND Art Collections in 2005, however, attempts are ongoing to rebuild the University collections and to focus more on the value of art for education, research and community cultural enrichment. Through these recent developments, many problems of the past are being rectified and art now also plays a more important role in support of UND's strategic initiatives.

Included in the show are several pieces that were recently recovered after being missing for years, important objects rescued from insecure or unsafe locations and damaged art that has recently been restored. Artworks that are missing and currently being searched for are also identified in an effort to seek the public's assistance in recovering them.

About the gallery at the Empire Arts Center:

Established on Aug. 29, 2012, as an outgrowth of a campus-wide "living art museum" program, the downtown gallery extends UND's rich collection of art beyond the campus borders. It was one of the first tangible examples of the University's commitment to expand its presence into the community – a primary tenet of the University's Exceptional UND initiative.

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