Blaffer Art Museum
Blaffer Art Museum was officially named what from 2010 to 2011?
Blaffer Art Museum Blaffer Art Museum is a non-collecting contemporary art museum located in the Arts District of the University of Houston campus . Housed in the university’s Fine Arts Building , it is part of the Kathrine G . McGovern College of the Arts . It was founded in 1973 and has won several awards , including the Coming Up Taller Award as part of the Presidents Committee on the Arts and Humanities . The museum exhibits national and international artists as well as artwork by students . History . The Sarah Campbell Blaffer Gallery was founded in 1973 , named in honor of the late Sarah Campbell Blaffer , who during her lifetime made available to the University a collection of major artworks dating from the 15th century to modern day . This collection was purchased in 1979 by the Blaffer Foundation , an independent organization which is unrelated to the museum and the University , and has been housed at The Museum of Fine Arts , Houston since that time . The income from the investment of the sale proceeds provides a portion of Blaffer Gallerys program budget . The Blaffer Art Museum has presented over 250 exhibitions . The current exhibition policy , adopted by the Advisory Board and University Regents in 1986 , focuses upon art of the past 100 years and its artistic , cultural and intellectual antecedents . In 1999 , the museum expanded . The museum created and hosts education and outreach programs . In 1988 , UHReach was founded and in 1998 Young Artists Apprenticeship Program ( YAAP ) was founded . In 2008 , Public Art of the University of Houston System acquired 149 photographs taken by Andy Warhol as a gift from the Andy Warhol Foundation . The photographs were featured in an exhibition at the Blaffer Gallery titled “Celebutants , Groupies and Friends.” The collection included photographs of Jamie Lee Curtis , Billy Squier , late Studio 54 owner Steve Rubell , Pia Zadora , and others . The Blaffer Art Museum was honored by the Institute of Museum and Library Services on November 4 , 2009 when first lady Michelle Obama awarded the museum with the Coming Up Taller Award . The award gives $10,000 to art programs that help underprivileged youth . Under the directorship of Claudia Schmuckli In 2010 , Blaffer Gallery was renamed to Blaffer Art Museum in the context of a major capital campaign for the museums redesign . The newly-renovated museum facility designed by the New York-based firm Work Architecture Co . opened on October 12 , 2012 . Exhibitions . The museum presents and originates between six and eight exhibitions annually . The annual schedule may include major traveling exhibitions that have a particular relevance to Houston audiences ; mid-sized retrospectives of national and international artists ; exhibitions of regional artists ; thematic surveys which place artists work into new contexts ; student exhibitions ; and special projects and performances by local artists . Blaffer Art Museum is dedicated to conducting original scholarship and research in contemporary art history . The museum frequently forges collaborative partnerships from among Houstons wealth of cultural organizations and educational institutions . Exhibition-related public programs and activities complement and elucidate each exhibition , from casual Brown Bag Lunch Tours to lively audience interaction during their Contemporary Salons . Recent major exhibitions of artists include Radcliffe Bailey ( 2001 ) ; Fred Wilson : Objects & Installations , 1979-2000 ( 2003 ) ; Chuck Close ( 2003 ) ; Jessica Stockholder : Kissing the Wall , 1988-2003 ( 2004 ) ; Urs Fischer : Mary Poppins ( 2006 ) ; Amy Sillman ( 2007 ) ; Jean-Luc Mylayne ( 2007 ) ; Chantal Akerman : Moving Through Time and Space ( 2008 ) ; Existed : Leonardo Drew ( 2009 ) ; Jon Pylypchuk ( 2009 ) ; Josephine Meckseper ( 2009 ) ; Gabriel Kuri ( 2010 ) ; Tony Feher ( 2012 ) ; Andy Coolquitt ( 2013 ) ; Feast : Radical Hospitality in Contemporary Art ( 2013 ) ; Zineb Sedira ( 2013 ) ; Candice Breitz ( 2014 ) ; Miguel Amat ( 2014 ) ; Mel Chin ( 2015 ) ; Janet Biggs ( 2015 ) ; Hubbard/Birchler ( 2015 ) ; Zina Saro-Wiwa ( 2015 ) ; Matthew Ronay ( 2016 ) ; Hilary Lloyd ( 2016 ) ; Slavs and Tatars : Mirrors for Princes ( 2016 ) ; Analia Saban ( 2017 ) ; Blake Rayne ( 2017 ) ; The Propeller Group ( 2017 ) ; Sergio Prego ( 2017 ) ; Anton Vidokle ( 2018 ) ; Richard Rezac ( 2018 ) ; Alfred Leslie ( 2018–19 ) ; Rebecca Morris ( 2019 ) ; Amie Siegel ( 2019 ) ; Paul Mpagi Sepuya ( 2019-20 ) ; Mariam Ghani ( 2020 ) ; Rodney McMillian ( 2020 ) ; Simon Fujiwara ( 2020 ) ; and Stephanie Syjuco ( 2020 ) . Blaffer Art Museum is free to the public and attracts over 30,000 visitors annually . Programs . In 1988 , Blaffer Gallery began a unique educational program for school children , UHReach . This program is now recognized nationally as an exemplary , multi-faceted outreach initiative . Blaffer has built intensive relationships with 18 elementary , middle and high schools in the neighborhoods surrounding the museum and UHReach serves schools from 24 area districts . Students from University of Houston and Texas Southern University are extensively trained and employed as docents for UHReach . They lead dialogue-based tours of the exhibitions and also visit school classrooms to conduct pre- and post-tour activities . In 1998 the Blaffer Gallery founded the Young Artists Apprenticeship Program ( YAAP ) , which provides a free after-school arts program to at-risk and special needs high school students . It is a six-week , after-school workshop and provides an in-depth exploration of an artistic medium , such as printmaking or videography . Students work with Blaffer staff and University of Houston students to create art , study current exhibitions and take field trips to local museums and galleries . The program finishes with a final project which is displayed in a museum exhibition and the top two students in the program win college scholarships . Education . Education programs are central to Blaffer Art Museums mission to serve as a resource for the study of art , art history and other related disciplines . By extending the educational and scholarly programs of the University to the community , the museum promotes learning as a continuous process , linking contemporary ideas and people . Through a broad range of programs , Blaffer presents enriching museum experiences while providing arts education opportunities for audiences of all ages and backgrounds .