Gallery Information - Richard F. Brush Art Gallery

The Gallery is free and open to the public during the academic year. Educational tours for school and community groups can be scheduled throughout the year; please call in advance. Scholars requesting access to objects from the permanent collection for research purposes should call in advance to set up an appointment.

Handicapped-accessible parking spaces are available in H Lot near Vilas Hall. The main entrance to the Noble University Student Center is wheelchair-accessible. From there, turn left and enter the Gallery through the Gulick Theatre lobby.

Named in recognition of the generosity of Richard F. Brush ‘52, the Gallery is an academic resource of St. Lawrence University, an independent liberal arts institution. The mission of the Gallery is to acquire, preserve, interpret, exhibit, and otherwise make accessible works of art for the benefit of a variety of audiences, in support of the educational goals of the University and for the benefit of the community at large. Programs and activities are designed to balance a range of disciplinary and interdisciplinary objectives, in recognition of diverse functions and meanings of art. As such, the Gallery provides a forum for the creative and critical expression of artists, historians, and curators. The Gallery seeks to integrate its activities into the University’s academic programs and curricular initiatives.

The stewardship of the University’s permanent collection and a program of temporary exhibitions are the central components of the Richard F. Brush Art Gallery. Related activities such as lectures, panel discussions, residencies, tours, acquisitions, conservation projects, and campus displays provide educational opportunities for faculty and students. The Gallery encourages faculty and student involvement in the utilization of the collection, in the exhibition program, and in all related educational activities.

The gallery primarily serves the needs of the University community, as well as audiences which include students and faculty from primary and secondary schools and colleges, visiting scholars, and other groups and individuals. In addition, the programs and activities of the Gallery serve as an academic and cultural resource for northern New York.

The Richard F. Brush Art Gallery strives to be recognized professionally for excellence in all aspects of its operations, and maintains legal and ethical standards prescribed by the American Association of Museums.

The Mission Statement was approved by the Art Gallery and University Collections Committee and the Dean of Academic Affairs ( February, 1994).

The exhibitions program supports the mission of the Richard F. Brush Art Gallery and the educational goals of St. Lawrence University. Exhibitions at the Gallery are intended to enrich the liberal arts curriculum of the University and to provide an educational and scholarly forum outside the classroom, laboratory, and studio. Faculty and student participation are essential to the exhibition program, from research and planning to installations and related educational programs. Faculty are encouraged to utilize exhibitions in their courses and to engage students in the study of original works of art.

The rotating exhibitions program is broadly based, presenting diverse media and genres. Contemporary and historical exhibitions include creative work by regional, national, and international artists. Exhibitions are organized and curated by Gallery staff, University faculty, guest curators, and traveling exhibitions organizations, drawing objects from the University’s Permanent Collection, museums and arts institutions, artists, private lenders, and commercial galleries. By presenting significant works and exhibitions utilizing high standards of display, the Gallery strives to be recognized for excellence in aesthetics and scholarly and cultural activities.

The Richard F. Brush Art Gallery presents a program of rotating individual and group exhibitions in three adjacent galleries. The exhibition schedule is planned to recognize the four-year tenure of individual students at St. Lawrence. The annual exhibitions schedule includes exhibition(s) directly related to the scholarly and classroom needs of the fine arts faculty, exhibitions(s) organized from the Permanent Collection, a Juried Student Art Exhibition, and exhibitions(s) that are part of the St. Lawrence University Festival of the Arts. One exhibition each year is designated the Barnes Endowment exhibition, in recognition of the generosity of Carlyle and Betty Barnes, parents of three St. Lawrence graduates.

The Gallery accepts exhibition proposals from faculty, students, staff, independent artists, and curators. After consultation with the Gallery Director, proposals are submitted in writing and include a description of the exhibition and its goals, a list of artists and/or objects, and a preliminary budget. After feasibility is determined, responsibilities and resources for projects are negotiated utilizing the Gallery’s exhibition checklist. Gallery staff meet with art department faculty as needed to discuss proposals and to recommend an exhibitions schedule. The Gallery Director is responsible for determining and implementing the exhibitions program in recognition of the objectives described in this policy.

The exhibitions program is complemented by related educational materials and activities such as catalogues and instructional texts, public lectures and panel discussions, demonstrations, and critiques devised by faculty, students, and staff. Individual and class tours are provided by Gallery staff, students, curators, and artists upon request. The Gallery seeks to make exhibitions and activities available to the St. Lawrence and regional communities through regular daytime, evening, and weekend hours or by appointment.

Approved by the Art Gallery and University Collections Committee and the Dean of Academic Affairs (February 1994).

The Richard F. Brush Art Gallery is an academic resource of St. Lawrence University and serves as the curator of its permanent collection of nearly 7,000 art objects and artifacts. As set forth in its Mission Statement, the Gallery's purpose is to "acquire, preserve, interpret, exhibit, and otherwise provide access to works of art" and to enhance the University's academic programs and the cultural life of the community at large.

Twentieth-century American and European works on paper, including prints, photographs, drawings, and artists' books and portfolios, represent the strengths of the permanent collection. Significant holdings in nineteenth- and twentieth-century American and European sculpture, ceramics, and painting, as well as in African objects, enhance ongoing programs of study at St. Lawrence University.

The University views its collection primarily as an educational resource. As such, original art objects and artifacts serve a variety of pedagogical objectives, which include the following:

to inspire creative and analytical work across the academic disciplines;
to teach, through first-hand study, strategies and techniques of artistic creation and production;
to teach about historical and contemporary cultures;
to teach museology through the direct practice of museum display and interpretation;
to make art objects available to scholars, museums, and educational institutions for purposes of exhibition, research, or education.

The diversity of these objectives and the inevitability of change within the institution's curricular initiatives require the Gallery Director to exercise discretion in balancing the Gallery's various objectives. Therefore, the Director will periodically re-examine collection development goals in conjunction with appropriate administrative and advisory bodies.

In general, the Acquisitions Policy and Deaccessions Policy give the Director the authority:

to determine acquisitions and deaccessions by a variety of criteria, which may include, but are not restricted to, quality judgements, usefulness for teaching purposes, and market value;
to accept or decline purchases or gifts based on practical considerations and broader goals of collection development;
to build upon existing strengths of the collection;
to reflect the University's curricular initiatives;
to acquire works indicative of new directions in the arts.

To fulfill the objectives set forth in the Collection Development Statement, the Gallery will acquire, through gift or purchase, art objects and artifacts for accession into the University's permanent collection.

An art object or artifact may be submitted for consideration as a gift or purchase in consultation with the Gallery Director, the Assistant Director, and/or the Development office. Before any object is accepted into the permanent collection, it must be recommended by the Collection Development Committee, a subcommittee of the Art Gallery and University Collection Committee, with final approval to be made by the Director.

The Gallery will only acquire objects that the University has the facilities and resources to care for properly. Consideration will be made regarding any special requirements associated with the object, including, but not limited to, conservation, preservation, exhibition, and insurance.

The Gallery will not acquire an object without attempting to obtain valid title and a verifiable record of authenticity and provenance. Normally, title to any object acquired, whether gifts or purchases, should be obtained free and clear without restrictions to use or future disposition. The Gallery will not acquire any object with the sole intention of selling or otherwise disposing of it.

Gifts or purchases of antiquities will only be recommended if in agreement with the United States federal policy as outlined in the 1983 Convention on Cultural Property Implementation Act, which prohibits the illicit import, export, and transfer or ownership of cultural property.

The University will insure objects in the permanent collection at current appraised values upon legal and physical transfer. For this purpose, documentation should be provided by the donor or seller stating:

current proof of ownership including, if available, bill of sale, artist, title, medium, size, date of execution, edition number, signature, and condition/conservation histories;
current appraised value of the object by an independent licensed appraiser or other expert, as indicated by the Gallery Director;
provenance and a history of appraisals, if available.

All acquisitions are irrevocable upon legal and physical transfer.

Objects may be purchased by the University for the permanent collection through funds from restricted art acquisition endowments which are maintained by the Gallery (the Eben Griffiths Endowment, the Helen Jeanne Gilbert Endowment, and the Helena Walsh Kane Endowment), through funds from restricted endowments maintained by the Department of Fine Arts (the Jeanne Scribner Cashin Endowment), or other University budgets. The Gallery and the Owen D. Young Library share the Manley/Frederic S. Remington Endowment which supports the University's Remington collections.

Purchases are coordinated through the Campus Support Services. A University purchase order will set forth an adequate description of the object and conditions of purchase, and it will serve as the University purchase record.

Each purchased object will be assigned an accession number and be properly documented. Records will be permanently maintained by the Assistant Director, and duplicate records will be retained by University Campus Support Services.

Upon the donation of an object, a University Gift Receipt from the Development office and a letter of thanks from the Gallery will be issued. Both will set forth an adequate description of the object and the conditions of transfer.

Each gift will be assigned an accession number and be properly documented. Records will be permanently maintained by the Assistant Director, and duplicate records will be retained by University Campus Support Services.

Costs for appraisals, shipping, shipping insurance, and display of a gift may be assumed by the University, the donor, and/or other sources in coordination with the University Development office.

To fulfill the objectives set forth in the Collection Development Statement, the Gallery will implement a deaccessioning process whereby art objects and artifacts are permanently removed from the University's permanent collection. Deaccessioning is considered a proper function of collections management and development. Its purpose is to enhance the quality, integrity, and identity of a collection without violating legal or ethical obligations.

The decision to deaccession any object from the University's permanent collection is based on, but not limited to these criteria:

the object is no longer relevant or useful to the purposes and activities of the University;
the University is unable to preserve the object properly;
the object has deteriorated beyond usefulness or reasonable repair;
the object will probably not be used in the foreseeable future;
the object duplicates other objects in the collection;
the object's removal will provide the means for improving or strengthening the collection to further the goals of the Gallery;
the object is requested for repatriation by aboriginal groups or foreign governments.

The Gallery Director or Assistant Director will submit written recommendations for deaccessions to the Collection Development Committee, in consultation with the following individuals and senior staff of the University, as appropriate: artist, donor, funder, seller, the Vice-President of University Relations, the Vice-President and Dean of Academic Affairs, the Dean of Administrative Operations, and the President. The recommendation will include an evaluation of the object and the reason for and method of its proposed removal. Recommendations may require consultation with external scholars, curators, conservators, or other experts. Final recommendations for deaccessions must be approved by the Vice-President and Dean of Academic Affairs and the President of the University.

The object to be deaccessioned will be disposed of by offer of donation or exchange, as determined by the Gallery Director and the Collection Development Committee.

Usable objects that have been deaccessioned will be donated to or exchanged with the following institutions in order of preference:

appropriate public museums;
appropriate public educational agencies and institutions;
private museums and educational agencies and institutions.

If the donation or exchange option fails, objects may be sold at a widely publicized public auction conducted by a reputable purveyor, who will determine fair market value. An independent appraisal may be conducted, if necessary. If contemporary works of art are involved, the artist, donor, or heirs will be notified by the University of the intention to sell.

Objects under consideration for exchange are subject to the Gallery's Acquisitions Policy and Procedures. Any object acquired as a direct result of the deaccession of another object shall be noted as "provided by" the donor of the original object.

If an object is disposed of by sale, its proceeds must be used for the purpose of acquiring objects for the collection, or at times, conservation of objects. Funds from deaccessioning will be placed in a separate University budget and will not be used toward the University's operating or capital expenditures.

St. Lawrence University faculty, staff, or students, or members of the University's Board of Trustees are not permitted to acquire any deaccessioned object under any circumstances. Funds from deaccessioning will not be used for personal gain.

Deaccessioning will be documented in writing and the original documents pertaining to the deaccession will be kept on file permanently with the Gallery. Duplicate records will be retained by University Campus Support Services. The written deaccession record will include:

the names and titles of persons involved in initiating and sanctioning the process, and date of deaccession;
an initial recommendation by the Gallery Director or Assistant Director;
the reason(s) for deaccessioning;
a description and condition report of the object being deaccessioned;
the St. Lawrence University identification number;
evidence of clear and unrestricted title of the University to the object;
photographic documentation of deaccessioned object.

a formal request for repatriation by aboriginal group or foreign government;
the name and location of the receiving museum, agency, institution, or purchaser, or aboriginal group or foreign country;
evidence from the receiving agency, aboriginal group, or foreign country government of their ability to properly care for and use the object;
a document transferring clear and unrestricted title to the receiving agency.

The Assistant Director will note the status of the object as "deaccessioned," and the object's accession number will not be reassigned.

To fulfill the objectives set forth in the Collection Development Statement, the Gallery will acquire, through extended loan, art objects and artifacts into the University's permanent collection.

An art object or artifact may be recommended for extended loan in consultation with the Gallery Director, the Assistant Director, and/or the Development office. Before any object is accepted into the permanent collection, it must be recommended by the Collection Development Committee, a subcommittee of the Art Gallery and University Collection Committee, with final approval to be made by the Director.

The Gallery will accept objects on extended loan using the criteria outlined in the Acquisitions Policy.

The Gallery will follow the procedures outlined in the Acquisitions Policy for the transfer of objects on extended loan. An extended loan will be maintained until the object's return is requested by the lender.

Current appraised value of an object on extended loan will be assumed by the lender unless other arrangements are made, as approved by the Gallery Director. The lender will notify the Gallery if any change in value occurs.

Upon the donation of an object on extended loan, the Gallery will issue an Extended Loan Receipt, a copy of which will be signed by the lender and returned to the Gallery. The receipt will set forth an adequate description of the object and the conditions of transfer, designating extended loan status.

Objects on extended loan will receive the same care as those which are owned by the University. Each extended loan will be assigned an accession number and be properly documented. Records will be permanently maintained by the Assistant Director, and duplicate records will be maintained by the University Campus Support Services. Costs for shipping, shipping insurance, or display of an object on extended loan may be assumed by the University or the lender in conjunction with the University Development office.

Modification, such as matting and framing, of an object on extended loan requires written consent of the lender.

If damage should occur to an object on extended loan, the Assistant Director will contact the lender at the earliest possible date. Conservation of the object will not be undertaken without written consent of the lender.

The Collection Development Statement was approved by the Art Gallery and University Collections Committee and Senior Staff (May 1996).