EAST LANSING, MICH.- Art patron, philanthropist and Michigan State University alumnus Eli Broad and his wife, Edythe, have donated 18 works by artists including Jonathan Borofksy, Terry Winters and Sue Williams to the
Broad Art Museum at Michigan State University (Broad MSU). This new gift is in addition to Containment 1 (2009) by Roxy Paine, the signature work for the museums sculpture garden, also donated by the Broads.
Opening November 10, 2012, the Broad MSU is dedicated to exploring global contemporary culture and ideas through art. The Broad Art Museum at MSU will serve as both an educational resource for the campus community and a cultural hub for the central Michigan region. With a collection containing 7,500 objects from the Greek and Roman periods through the Renaissance and on to the Modern, the Broad MSU is uniquely able to contextualize the wide range of contemporary art practices within a firm historical context.
This extraordinary gift helps us fill a significant gap in our collection of contemporary art, specifically 80s and 90s paintings. Key works by Sue Williams, Peter Halley, Donald Baechler, Ross Bleckner and a host of others will greatly enhance our ability to demonstrate the progression of contemporary painting in America, said founding director Michael Rush. We are so incredibly grateful to Eli and Edythe Broad for their unflagging commitment to this museum.
Longtime supporters of the university, Eli and Edythe Broad provided the lead gift of $26 million in 2007 for the Zaha Hadid-designed museum, which was named in their honor. They subsequently increased their contribution to more than $28 million, of which $21 million is designated for design and construction and $7 million for acquisitions, exhibitions, and operations.
Edye and I are delighted to share works from our foundation and personal collections with this stunning new museum that serves the students and community of East Lansing and beyond, said Eli Broad. Through our arts philanthropy, we have always been driven to make great works of art accessible to a broad public.
Paines Containment 1, part of the artists Dendroid series of life-size stainless steel trees, will be displayed in the outdoor sculpture garden located on the east side of the museum.
The Broad donation also includes the following 18 paintings, works on paper, and other media:
Donald Baechler: Andre's Flower #5, 1993; The Red Apron, 1991; The Red Hat, 1991
Ross Bleckner: Invisible Heaven, 1991; Map By Heart, 1996
Jonathan Borofsky: Chattering Man with 9 Framed Drawings, 1986; The Moon in My Mind at 2,998,773, 1986
Peter Halley: Cell with Smoke Stack and Conduit, 1990; Cinder Block Prison, 1990; Untitled (Stacked Rock), 1990
Jonathan Lasker: Rhetorical Remembrance, 1985
Robert Longo: America on Wheels, 1991; Heads will Roll, 1984-85; Sketch for Heads will Roll, 1984
Elizabeth Murray: Toes Two, 1994
Sue Williams: Golden Valley Stream, 2000; Hand and Foot, Blue, Red, Green with Pink and Yellow-Green, 1997
Terry Winters: Asphaltum, 1986