PLAINS ART MUSEUM RECEIVES MAJOR DONATIONS AND CONTINUES ROSENQUIST COMMISSION

With the help of an anonymous donor, the Plains Art Museum in Fargo, North Dakota, has finalized its commission of a $1.2 million James Rosenquist mural, reports John Lamb for the Forum of Fargo-Moorhead. The commission had been in the works for years and planned when the renowned artist visited Fargo in 2005.

Funding had been a hurdle in the acquisition. A press release announcing the arrangement said a donor gave $600,000, which was matched by the artist in labor, materials, and lowering his fee. The donor’s name was not revealed, but Plains Art Museum director Colleen Sheehy said the giver was from the community.

“We’re so grateful because this donor was able to fulfill this dream,” said Sheehy. The first version of The North Dakota Mural burned in a fire that destroyed Rosenquist’s Aripeka, Florida, home in January 2009. Sheehy saw the original and after the fire asked the artist to maintain the piece’s spirit. She and curator Mark Ryan will travel to Rosenquist’s home in March to examine the painting.

The mural will be unveiled in early October and will hang above the main floor in the Ruth and Seymour Landfield Atrium. “I’m ecstatic that we’ve finished one major piece in the capital campaign,” said Sheehy.

This is the second recent announcement about major donations to the museum’s campaign. In December, the Grand Rapids, Michigan–based Kresge Foundation gave $800,000 and the Saint Paul, Minnesota–based Bush Foundation gave $555,000. Sheehy says the goal for all fund-raising is to finish by fall 2011. “We’re charging ahead,” she said. “There’s momentum.”