USU’s art museum to exhibit complete contemporary art collection

By: Kristen Steiner

Utah State University’s Nora Eccles Harrison Museum of Art will be opening the exhibit “The Dorothy and Herbert Vogel Collection: 50 Works for 50 States” on Thursday.

The exhibit will include works by Lynda Benglis, Richard Tuttle, Lucio Pozzi and many other well-known artists. All pieces will be displaying different mediums and types of art, but together create a collection of contemporary, modern and minimalistic art.

“I think patrons will be surprised by the diversity of objects in the Vogel collection,” said Andrea DeHaan, the administrative coordinator at the museum, also known as NEHMA. “Moreover, there are minimalist pieces that will challenge some viewers, but we have had many visitors come to NEHMA over the years for the specific purpose of seeing the collection, and we are pleased to be able to fully exhibit the collection in our gallery.”

Dorothy and Herbert Vogel, a librarian and postman, began collecting contemporary art items after their marriage in 1962. Since that time, they have collected more than 5,000 pieces of art focusing on the conceptual, minimalist and post-minimalistic art styles. 

In 1992, the couple moved its art collection to the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C. due to the size of the collection, and its continuing growth. In 2008, the Vogels announced they would disperse 2,500 pieces of work to various contemporary museums all over the country. NEHMA was the recipient for the state of Utah.

DeHaan said the exhibit represents the first time a full installation of these 50 works will be exhibited at the Nora Eccles Harrison Museum of Art.

“They had been on display since 2008, but the museum did not have the space to exhibit all 50 pieces prior to this exhibit,” DeHaan said.

The artwork was added to the museum’s permanent collection when it arrived in 2008.

The museum holds more than 5,000 pieces, said Casey Allen, NEHMA’s registrar.

Due to the size of the museum, not all of the collection could be displayed, but since making room, and acquiring the rest of the collection, great efforts have gone into preparing for the exhibit.

In preparation, many of the pieces had to be framed, DeHaan said.

“This was quite the undertaking and expense and a factor for why the collection had not been fully exhibited until now,” DeHaan said. “Thankfully we worked with Fuhriman’s Framing to create a cohesive look across a diverse collection.”

NEHMA is the only accredited museum in Northern Utah dedicated to contemporary and modern art, DeHaan said.

“Since much of the work from their collection focuses on conceptual, minimalist art, it is an excellent fit for the collection and mission of our museum,” DeHaan said.

The exhibit will be on display March 19 through Aug. 1 at NEHMA, which is located on USU’s main campus.

More information on the exhibit can be found at http://artmuseum.usu.edu/.