Hallie Ford Museum of Art
Encyclopedia
The Hallie Ford Museum of Art (HFMA) is the museum of Willamette University
in Salem, Oregon
, United States
. It is the third largest art museum in Oregon
. Opened in 1998, the facility is across the street from the Oregon State Capital in downtown Salem, on the western edge of the school campus. Hallie Ford exhibits collections of both art and historical artifacts with a focus on Oregon related pieces of art and artists in the 27000 square feet (2,508.4 m²) facility. The museum
also hosts various traveling exhibits in two of its six galleries
.
donated to the university. By 1896 the collections were housed in a museum located on the fourth floor of Waller Hall
. By 1940 the museum had moved to the second floor of the gymnasium (now the Theatre Playhouse). At that time the museum's collection included birds, various documents, minerals, wood specimens, shells, plant specimens, and Native American artifacts, among others.
In 1990, the school received a donation of around 250 pieces of ancient, Europe
an, Middle Eastern, and Asia
n art from the Sponenburgh family. Alumnus Dan Schneider suggested to an art faculty member, Roger Hull, that the school should have a museum to display the university’s art collection in 1992. Then in 1994 Roger Hull made a presentation to the school’s trustees to push for the creation of an art museum. Over the next two years plans were developed and donations were made that led to the purchase of a building near campus for a museum. One large donation came from Hallie Ford and the Ford Family Foundation that allowed the purchase and remodel to move forward. The museum officially opened in 1998 with over 3,000 pieces of art, and was the second largest art museum in the state at that time.
The museum was named top fine arts venue and art gallery in the local region in 2002 by residents. In 2003, the facility received a Certificate of Award from the Oregon Art Education Association, and was named as the third best art gallery in Oregon’s mid-Willamette Valley
region. Attendance at the museum was approximately 16,000 in the first full-year of operation and increased to around 30,000 people per year in 2003.
In July 2007, the museum began a remodeling project to add storage to the basement areas and the room used for studying prints. The $850,000 remodel was completed in December 2007 with funding coming from a donation by Maribeth Collins. Also in 2007, Hallie Ford Museum of Art was given an American Masterpieces grant by the National Endowment for the Arts
through the Oregon Arts Commission
. This $50,000 grant helped to fund an exhibit entitled “The Art of Ceremony” regarding tribal ceremonies of Native American tribes in Oregon.
building contains 27000 square feet (2,508.4 m²) on three floors (two above ground), and was designed by local architect James L. Payne. In 1996, the building then owned by US West Communications
was purchased by the university. Willamette then remodeled the building during 1997 to 1998 with the design coming from Jon Weiner of Soderstrom Architects of Portland, Oregon
.
The building opened on October 3, 1998, with a two story atrium gallery, curves located throughout the interior space, marble
panels, and an enclosed garden on the exterior. Additionally, the brick faced structure has an exterior patio constructed of slate. There are a total of six galleries at the museum, with four used for permanent collections and two galleries used for traveling exhibits. In 2008, colored reflector panels were added to the narrow second floor windows in order to provide more color to the exterior. Measuring 69.5 inches high by 21.75 inches wide, some of the panels are illuminated from the interior.
. The museum also features local art and artists.
Confederated Tribes of the Grand Ronde Gallery contains basketry made by Native American
tribes in the Pacific Northwest. These pieces are from the Byrd and Polleski Collections acquired during the 1940s. The museum also contains the Carl Hall Gallery that holds a variety of work, including work by former faculty members. Other galleries at the museum include the Melvin Henderson-Rubio Gallery that exhibits traveling collections, General Collections Gallery that displays Asian and European artwork, the Study Gallery that shows small temporary collections, and the Print Study Room that exhibits prints and photographs.
HFMA holds two paintings by German
landscape painter Frederick Ferdinand Schafer (1839-1927). Morning in the Adirondacks and Olympic Mountains, Washington were both acquired in 1996 by the museum. Other pieces of art include Egyptian art, Korean
art, African art, Indian art, and etchings by Dutch artist Anthonie Waterloo. The museum also houses the Paulus Collection of photograph glass negatives of the Salem area from the early Twentieth Century.
Hallie Ford Museum of Art is a member of both the American Association for State and Local History, and the American Association of Museums
. The museum has an endowment of $4.5 million as of 2005.
, Jacob Lawrence
, David Giese, Fay Jones, Eunice Parsons, David Gilhooly
, Mary Lou Zeek, and Robert Hess among other artists. HFMA has also hosted traveling exhibits on Egyptian art in 2002, was one of three U.S. stops for the "Toi Maori: The Eternal Thread" exhibit, exhibited a collection of ancient glass work in 2007, and displayed an exhibit on ancient Roman and Greek artifacts.
and moved to Oregon after graduation. Ford became a trustee at Willamette University in 1975. She was the wife of Kenneth W. Ford and they built Roseburg Forest Products
Company in Roseburg, Oregon
, beginning in 1936. From this they later started a foundation that would grow to become the Ford Family Foundation in 1996. Ford died on June 4, 2007, at age 102.
Willamette University
Willamette University is an American private institution of higher learning located in Salem, Oregon. Founded in 1842, it is the oldest university in the Western United States. Willamette is a member of the Annapolis Group of colleges, and is made up of an undergraduate College of Liberal Arts and...
in Salem, Oregon
Salem, Oregon
Salem is the capital of the U.S. state of Oregon, and the county seat of Marion County. It is located in the center of the Willamette Valley alongside the Willamette River, which runs north through the city. The river forms the boundary between Marion and Polk counties, and the city neighborhood...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. It is the third largest art museum in Oregon
Oregon
Oregon is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is located on the Pacific coast, with Washington to the north, California to the south, Nevada on the southeast and Idaho to the east. The Columbia and Snake rivers delineate much of Oregon's northern and eastern...
. Opened in 1998, the facility is across the street from the Oregon State Capital in downtown Salem, on the western edge of the school campus. Hallie Ford exhibits collections of both art and historical artifacts with a focus on Oregon related pieces of art and artists in the 27000 square feet (2,508.4 m²) facility. The museum
Museum
A museum is an institution that cares for a collection of artifacts and other objects of scientific, artistic, cultural, or historical importance and makes them available for public viewing through exhibits that may be permanent or temporary. Most large museums are located in major cities...
also hosts various traveling exhibits in two of its six galleries
Art exhibition
Art exhibitions are traditionally the space in which art objects meet an audience. The exhibit is universally understood to be for some temporary period unless, as is rarely true, it is stated to be a "permanent exhibition". In American English, they may be called "exhibit", "exposition" or...
.
History
Prior to the creation of the Hallie Ford Museum, Willamette University previously collected various pieces of artArt
Art is the product or process of deliberately arranging items in a way that influences and affects one or more of the senses, emotions, and intellect....
donated to the university. By 1896 the collections were housed in a museum located on the fourth floor of Waller Hall
Waller Hall
Waller Hall is the oldest building on the campus of Willamette University in Salem, Oregon, United States. Built in 1867 as University Hall, the five-story, red-brick structure was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1975...
. By 1940 the museum had moved to the second floor of the gymnasium (now the Theatre Playhouse). At that time the museum's collection included birds, various documents, minerals, wood specimens, shells, plant specimens, and Native American artifacts, among others.
In 1990, the school received a donation of around 250 pieces of ancient, Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
an, Middle Eastern, and Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
n art from the Sponenburgh family. Alumnus Dan Schneider suggested to an art faculty member, Roger Hull, that the school should have a museum to display the university’s art collection in 1992. Then in 1994 Roger Hull made a presentation to the school’s trustees to push for the creation of an art museum. Over the next two years plans were developed and donations were made that led to the purchase of a building near campus for a museum. One large donation came from Hallie Ford and the Ford Family Foundation that allowed the purchase and remodel to move forward. The museum officially opened in 1998 with over 3,000 pieces of art, and was the second largest art museum in the state at that time.
The museum was named top fine arts venue and art gallery in the local region in 2002 by residents. In 2003, the facility received a Certificate of Award from the Oregon Art Education Association, and was named as the third best art gallery in Oregon’s mid-Willamette Valley
Willamette Valley
The Willamette Valley is the most populated region in the state of Oregon of the United States. Located in the state's northwest, the region is surrounded by tall mountain ranges to the east, west and south and the valley's floor is broad, flat and fertile because of Ice Age conditions...
region. Attendance at the museum was approximately 16,000 in the first full-year of operation and increased to around 30,000 people per year in 2003.
In July 2007, the museum began a remodeling project to add storage to the basement areas and the room used for studying prints. The $850,000 remodel was completed in December 2007 with funding coming from a donation by Maribeth Collins. Also in 2007, Hallie Ford Museum of Art was given an American Masterpieces grant by the National Endowment for the Arts
National Endowment for the Arts
The National Endowment for the Arts is an independent agency of the United States federal government that offers support and funding for projects exhibiting artistic excellence. It was created by an act of the U.S. Congress in 1965 as an independent agency of the federal government. Its current...
through the Oregon Arts Commission
Oregon Arts Commission
The Oregon Arts Commission is a governor-appointed body of nine commissioners who allocate grants for artists based in the U.S. state of Oregon. It receives the bulk of its funding through the National Endowment for the Arts, the state, and the Oregon Cultural Trust.-History:Established in 1967,...
. This $50,000 grant helped to fund an exhibit entitled “The Art of Ceremony” regarding tribal ceremonies of Native American tribes in Oregon.
Building
The building housing the museum was built in 1965 for Pacific Northwest Bell. This International StyleInternational style (architecture)
The International style is a major architectural style that emerged in the 1920s and 1930s, the formative decades of Modern architecture. The term originated from the name of a book by Henry-Russell Hitchcock and Philip Johnson, The International Style...
building contains 27000 square feet (2,508.4 m²) on three floors (two above ground), and was designed by local architect James L. Payne. In 1996, the building then owned by US West Communications
Qwest
Qwest Communications International, Inc. was a large United States telecommunications carrier. Qwest provided local service in 14 western U.S. states: Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Iowa, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oregon, South Dakota, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming.On April...
was purchased by the university. Willamette then remodeled the building during 1997 to 1998 with the design coming from Jon Weiner of Soderstrom Architects of Portland, Oregon
Portland, Oregon
Portland is a city located in the Pacific Northwest, near the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2010 Census, it had a population of 583,776, making it the 29th most populous city in the United States...
.
The building opened on October 3, 1998, with a two story atrium gallery, curves located throughout the interior space, marble
Marble
Marble is a metamorphic rock composed of recrystallized carbonate minerals, most commonly calcite or dolomite.Geologists use the term "marble" to refer to metamorphosed limestone; however stonemasons use the term more broadly to encompass unmetamorphosed limestone.Marble is commonly used for...
panels, and an enclosed garden on the exterior. Additionally, the brick faced structure has an exterior patio constructed of slate. There are a total of six galleries at the museum, with four used for permanent collections and two galleries used for traveling exhibits. In 2008, colored reflector panels were added to the narrow second floor windows in order to provide more color to the exterior. Measuring 69.5 inches high by 21.75 inches wide, some of the panels are illuminated from the interior.
Collections
Hallie Ford Museum of Art has a diverse collection of art from across cultures and eras. Six exhibition galleries contain artwork from different mediums such as sculptures, paintings, basketry, and prints. Artwork includes Native American art, European paintings, American art, and contemporary artContemporary art
Contemporary art can be defined variously as art produced at this present point in time or art produced since World War II. The definition of the word contemporary would support the first view, but museums of contemporary art commonly define their collections as consisting of art produced...
. The museum also features local art and artists.
Confederated Tribes of the Grand Ronde Gallery contains basketry made by Native American
Native Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...
tribes in the Pacific Northwest. These pieces are from the Byrd and Polleski Collections acquired during the 1940s. The museum also contains the Carl Hall Gallery that holds a variety of work, including work by former faculty members. Other galleries at the museum include the Melvin Henderson-Rubio Gallery that exhibits traveling collections, General Collections Gallery that displays Asian and European artwork, the Study Gallery that shows small temporary collections, and the Print Study Room that exhibits prints and photographs.
HFMA holds two paintings by German
Germans
The Germans are a Germanic ethnic group native to Central Europe. The English term Germans has referred to the German-speaking population of the Holy Roman Empire since the Late Middle Ages....
landscape painter Frederick Ferdinand Schafer (1839-1927). Morning in the Adirondacks and Olympic Mountains, Washington were both acquired in 1996 by the museum. Other pieces of art include Egyptian art, Korean
Culture of Korea
The current political separation of North and South Korea has resulted in divergence in modern Korean cultures; nevertheless, the traditional culture of Korea is historically shared by both states.-Dance:...
art, African art, Indian art, and etchings by Dutch artist Anthonie Waterloo. The museum also houses the Paulus Collection of photograph glass negatives of the Salem area from the early Twentieth Century.
Hallie Ford Museum of Art is a member of both the American Association for State and Local History, and the American Association of Museums
American Association of Museums
The American Association of Museums is a non-profit association that has brought museums together since its founding in 1906, helping develop standards and best practices, gathering and sharing knowledge, and advocating on issues of concern to the museum community...
. The museum has an endowment of $4.5 million as of 2005.
Past exhibits
Seattle painter Michael Spafford’s works were featured in a 1999 show HFMA. In 2005, the museum displayed a retrospective of Portland artist Michael Brophy. The museum held a show in 2007 featuring work by Oregon painter Amanda Snyderis. Other exhibits have included shows on Rick BartowRick Bartow
Rick Bartow is a Native American artist of Wiyot and Yurok heritage. He works in sculpture, print, etching, ceramics, mixed media, and painting.-Early life:...
, Jacob Lawrence
Jacob Lawrence
Jacob Lawrence was an American painter; he was married to fellow artist Gwendolyn Knight. Lawrence referred to his style as "dynamic cubism", though by his own account the primary influence was not so much French art as the shapes and colors of Harlem.Lawrence is among the best-known twentieth...
, David Giese, Fay Jones, Eunice Parsons, David Gilhooly
David Gilhooly
David Gilhooly, also known as David James Gilhooly III, is an American ceramicist and printmaker, born in Auburn, California in 1943.He graduated from the University of California, Davis with a BA in 1965 and an MA in 1967...
, Mary Lou Zeek, and Robert Hess among other artists. HFMA has also hosted traveling exhibits on Egyptian art in 2002, was one of three U.S. stops for the "Toi Maori: The Eternal Thread" exhibit, exhibited a collection of ancient glass work in 2007, and displayed an exhibit on ancient Roman and Greek artifacts.
Namesake
Hallie Ford was one of the founders of the Ford Family Foundation. She graduated from East Central University in OklahomaOklahoma
Oklahoma is a state located in the South Central region of the United States of America. With an estimated 3,751,351 residents as of the 2010 census and a land area of 68,667 square miles , Oklahoma is the 28th most populous and 20th-largest state...
and moved to Oregon after graduation. Ford became a trustee at Willamette University in 1975. She was the wife of Kenneth W. Ford and they built Roseburg Forest Products
Roseburg Forest Products
Roseburg Forest Products, based in Roseburg, Oregon, is one of the largest privately owned wood–products companies in the United States. Originally named Roseburg Lumber, the company was founded by Kenneth Ford in 1937, operating mills throughout Western Oregon. In the early 1980s it was renamed...
Company in Roseburg, Oregon
Roseburg, Oregon
Roseburg is a city in the U.S. state of Oregon. It is the county seat of Douglas County. The population was 21,181 at the 2010 census.-History:...
, beginning in 1936. From this they later started a foundation that would grow to become the Ford Family Foundation in 1996. Ford died on June 4, 2007, at age 102.