A live band played as donors, board members and supporters gathered outside the University Art Museum’s entrance yesterday to announce the debut of its fundraising campaign, “Break Down the Wall.”
According to UAM Director Christopher Scoates, the UAM aims to raise $600,000 by Christmas for its Plaza Re-Design Project, which includes breaking down a wall to give the UAM something it has never had before: a front entrance.
UAM Associate Director Ilee Kaplan said that more than half of the money needed for the project has already been raised.
Kaplan said the museum was moved in 1994 from its old location on the fifth floor of the library to the west side of the Horn Center in an effort to make it more accessible to the public by situating it closer to the parking structure.
“We have thousands of students walk by this building every day, and they don’t know we’re here,” Scoates said.
However, despite its proximity to the “pedestrian highway” on the west side of the Horn Center, the wall keeps the UAM tucked away from the flux of students walking by.
The new design would create two walls flanking the entrance of the museum and turn what is currently a grassy knoll into a plaza that the UAM intends to use as a place for concerts, performances, films and receptions, as well as a gathering place for students, according to Kaplan.
During his speech on Sunday, Scoates explained the significance of the remodeling.
“This plaza is important for three very specific reasons,” he said. “One is to create better visibility, two is to engage the campus, and three is to create a community bridge.”
Fred Fisher, the architect who created the new design, said that the UAM’s goal is to highlight its presence and attract the attention of those who pass by.
“We hope to create a momentary pause on this freeway of campus circulation … to make people realize they’re passing through a space, not passing in front of a building,” Fisher said.
Kaplan said student groups and other departments often approach the UAM and ask to host events there, but the museum has always been limited in what it can offer because eating and drinking are prohibited inside the gallery.
With the construction of the new plaza, she said, the UAM will have a space outside that will be easy to use for other people’s events.
Additionally, donors will have their names displayed on part of the museum. The more money a donor gives, the closer his or her name will be to the front of the museum.
“Traditionally with campaigns, you don’t go ‘public’ until you’re halfway there,” Kaplan said about the money already raised. “We’ve had two lead gifts that have allowed us to get a little bit over the halfway point.”
Construction will begin when the UAM’s fundraising goal has been met, according to Scoates.