Terra Foundation and Art Bridges Announce New Partnership

A special initiative of the Terra Foundation and Art Bridges, Inc., Terra-Art Bridges is a six-year program that connects a wide range of art institutions across the United States. These partnerships link museums in metropolitan areas with those in more rural communities to serve audiences with limited access to fine art. The initiative expects to generate exhibitions at more than 80 museums and arts venues and meet a spectrum of audience interests and needs. Art Bridges, Inc., is a nonprofit established by Alice Walton, the daughter of Walmart founder Sam Walton and the founder of the Crystal Bridges Museum in Bentonville, AK.

The Terra-Art Bridges collaboration has many ambitious and admirable objectives. The organizations are eager to expand access to meaningful works of American art and ideas among diverse American audiences, while creating opportunities for the collaborative curation of exhibitions with specific communities in mind. In doing so, the project encourages object-centered professional development among all partner museums and broadens the relevance of museums in the 21st century by piloting new exhibitions to engage nontraditional museum-goers.

These grants, offered through invitation only, will support the co-creation of a series of exhibitions on art of the United States that range from single-object installations to full-scale exhibitions. The content-rich exhibitions supported by Terra-Art Bridges will engage local audiences and include in-depth educational and interpretive materials. Presenting institutions will also be supported directly by Art Bridges, Inc., for related programming, community outreach, audience engagement, and evaluation.

The Detroit Institute of Arts and the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, were selected to lead the first round of projects. The DIA is planning exhibitions with smaller institutions throughout Michigan, while the MFAB is working in New England and New York State. According to the Art Newspaper, the program is funded by a $2.4 million grant from the Terra-Art Bridges partnership. The pilot projects are part of a larger $15 million collection-sharing initiative developed by Art Bridges, Inc.

Elliot Bostwick Davis, the John Moors Cabot Art Chair of the Art of the Americas at the MFAB, reported that her staff is honored by the opportunity to “excite local audiences by building meaningful exhibitions with our partner organizations.” The host museums are steering the object selection, with the full breadth of the American collection available for their consideration.

At the DIA, Director Salvador Salort-Pons commented that “A central element of our vision is to serve audiences across the state of Michigan…and to find new ways of bringing the diversity of our collections to communities that may not have ready access to the museum.” With this support from Terra-Art Bridges, “we gain an opportunity to learn from the expertise and experience of other institutions, and to collaborate with them to create exhibitions that address the interests of a range of different audiences.” A portion of the DIA’s outreach incorporates paintings from the Richard and Jane Manoogian Collection.

A special initiative of the Terra Foundation and Art Bridges, Inc., Terra-Art Bridges is a six-year program that connects a wide range of art institutions across the United States. These partnerships link museums in metropolitan areas with those in more rural communities to serve audiences with limited access to fine art. The initiative expects to generate exhibitions at more than 80 museums and arts venues and meet a spectrum of audience interests and needs. Art Bridges, Inc., is a nonprofit established by Alice Walton, the daughter of Walmart founder Sam Walton and the founder of the Crystal Bridges Museum in Bentonville, AK.

The Terra-Art Bridges collaboration has many ambitious and admirable objectives. The organizations are eager to expand access to meaningful works of American art and ideas among diverse American audiences, while creating opportunities for the collaborative curation of exhibitions with specific communities in mind. In doing so, the project encourages object-centered professional development among all partner museums and broadens the relevance of museums in the 21st century by piloting new exhibitions to engage nontraditional museum-goers.

These grants, offered through invitation only, will support the co-creation of a series of exhibitions on art of the United States that range from single-object installations to full-scale exhibitions. The content-rich exhibitions supported by Terra-Art Bridges will engage local audiences and include in-depth educational and interpretive materials. Presenting institutions will also be supported directly by Art Bridges, Inc., for related programming, community outreach, audience engagement, and evaluation.

The Detroit Institute of Arts and the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, were selected to lead the first round of projects. The DIA is planning exhibitions with smaller institutions throughout Michigan, while the MFAB is working in New England and New York State. According to the Art Newspaper, the program is funded by a $2.4 million grant from the Terra-Art Bridges partnership. The pilot projects are part of a larger $15 million collection-sharing initiative developed by Art Bridges, Inc.

Elliot Bostwick Davis, the John Moors Cabot Art Chair of the Art of the Americas at the MFAB, reported that her staff is honored by the opportunity to “excite local audiences by building meaningful exhibitions with our partner organizations.” The host museums are steering the object selection, with the full breadth of the American collection available for their consideration.

At the DIA, Director Salvador Salort-Pons commented that “A central element of our vision is to serve audiences across the state of Michigan…and to find new ways of bringing the diversity of our collections to communities that may not have ready access to the museum.” With this support from Terra-Art Bridges, “we gain an opportunity to learn from the expertise and experience of other institutions, and to collaborate with them to create exhibitions that address the interests of a range of different audiences.” A portion of the DIA’s outreach incorporates paintings from the Richard and Jane Manoogian Collection.