Exploring the Binghamton University Art Collection: A Diverse Cultural Repository
The Binghamton University Art Museum, located on the second floor of the Fine Arts Building on the Binghamton University campus in New York, serves as a dynamic center for artistic exploration and cultural enrichment. Its permanent collection comprises over 3,500 works from various eras and media, reflecting a commitment to collecting, preserving, presenting, and documenting works of art from diverse cultures. The museum plays a vital role in the education, enrichment, and entertainment of the campus community, the Greater Binghamton area, and the broader national and international art world.
The Genesis of a Collection
The foundation of the Binghamton University Art Museum and its permanent art collection can be attributed to the late Professor Kenneth Lindsay, for whom the Kenneth C. Lindsay Study Room is named. Lindsay, who also founded the university's visual arts program, initiated the collection, laying the groundwork for what would become a significant cultural asset.
A Mission of Preservation and Education
The museum's mission extends beyond simply housing a collection of art. It actively seeks to collect, preserve, present, and document works of art from diverse cultures. This commitment ensures that the collection remains a valuable resource for education, enrichment, and entertainment. Students are offered a chance to curate exhibitions within the museum as well as showcasing works. The Kenneth C. Lindsay Study Room further supports this mission by providing students, faculty, and the general public with a space to view works in the permanent collection for educational purposes. An area leading into the Lindsay Study Room has recently been transformed into visible storage, where visitors may view objects that would otherwise be in vault storage, but are instead densely installed in glass cabinets.
Highlights from the Collection
The Binghamton University Art Museum's permanent collection is vast and varied, encompassing a range of styles, periods, and media.
In an exhibition opened in January 2014, the museum showcased 50 works on paper from the 15th to 20th centuries, selected from its permanent collection, including works by Albrecht Dürer and Salvador Dalí. The collection also includes works of Henry Moore and Philip Guston.
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Other notable pieces include:
- Kobayashi Eijiro, High Bridge by Night, 1920, wood engraving, gift of John C. This piece exemplifies Japonisme-the widespread craze for all things Japanese.
- Frank Lloyd Wright, Architectural Drawing of H.C. Price Company Tower, ca. 2026 Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation. All Rights Reserved. Wright completed over 500 projects, relying on a team of talented draftsmen and -women who worked in his office. Students can further explore his work in courses like “Rewriting Wright” (ARTH 480A).
- English, Saucer, ca. 1805-20, stoneware.
- Why So Blue? oil and collage. Gift of Clifford M.
- print. Gift of John C.
- Joseph Louis Juste (Haitian, 1940-1989) Untitled, ca. 1940-1989) fer decoupoe (cut metal).
Public Art on Campus
Beyond the museum's walls, Binghamton University recognizes the importance of public art in enhancing the campus environment. Public Art is defined as permanent or temporary art in public spaces on campus, including buildings considered public spaces, building facades and lobbies, as well as alterations or additions on campus grounds. All public art projects require approval of the Campus Appearance Committee and Senior Officer’s Group (SOG).
Guidelines for Public Art
To ensure the safety and aesthetic integrity of public art installations, the university has established specific guidelines. These standards ensure that public art:
- Presents no environmental or potential safety hazard.
- Is able to withstand upstate New York weather conditions and resist vandalism.
- Addresses the safety of the public interacting with it.
These guidelines also consider the cost of installation and funding of annual maintenance. A University or art museum-accessioned piece must adhere to these standards.
Approval Process for Public Art
The process for approving public art installations involves several steps:
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- The artist prepares a model(s) or concept(s) of the proposed gift for advancement.
- The Campus Appearance Committee reviews the proposal.
- The proposal is presented to the president for advancement.
- The committee determines whether it meets the criteria for being displayed on campus.
- The proposal is submitted to SOG for approval.
Temporary art installations, defined as those lasting no more than 31 calendar days, require notification to the vice president or dean as early as possible prior to proposed installation. The responsible faculty or staff members are responsible for maintaining records. Appointments are for one year with the possibility of reappointment.
Visiting the Museum
The Binghamton University Art Museum offers various opportunities for visitors to engage with art. Exhibitions are installed in the Main Gallery, the Susan M. Reifer ’65 and Stanley J. Reifer ’64 Mezzanine Gallery and the Nancy J. Powell Gallery, which itself consists of several small galleries. The Main Gallery and the Susan M. Stanley J. are free and open to the public year round. Other temporary exhibitions are on view downstairs in the Nancy J. The museum is open to the public during public hours every week or by appointment in the Kenneth C. Lindsay Study Room.
Resources for Art Research
The Binghamton University Art Museum is complemented by a wealth of online resources for art research, including:
- Digital Public Library of America (DPLA): This platform brings together the riches of America’s libraries, archives, and museums, making them freely available to the world. It strives to contain the full breadth of human expression, from the written word, to works of art and culture, to records of America’s heritage, to the efforts and data of science. DPLA aims to expand this crucial realm of openly available materials, and make those riches more easily discovered and more widely usable and used.
- Artstor: A digital library of more than one million images in the arts, architecture, humanities, and social sciences. Covers art from the Early Christian period to the 16th century, focusing on iconographic documentation in both text and image.
- VADS (Visual Arts Data Service): VADS is the online resource for visual arts.
- Art UK: An aggregate of 151 art collections from museums around the world set in a dynamic user-friendly platform.
- British Museum Collection Database: With more than 2 million records, the database is based on the British Museum's collection management tool.
- Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT) Digital Collections: A project by Fashion Institute of Technology's History of Art Department.
- The Getty Open Content Program: The Getty makes available, without charge, all available digital images to which the Getty holds the rights or that are in the public domain to be used for any purpose. No permission is required.
- Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) Collection Online: The database covers all the works exhibited in the museum, some 30,000 items.
- NGA Images: NGA Images is a repository of open access digital images of the collections of the National Gallery of Art.
- Yale University Art Gallery Online Collection: Search 1.5 million records in the areas of art, natural history, books, and maps, photographs, audio, video, and materials specific to the University in Yale's digital collection.
- Asia Art Archive: An amazing site for all things avant-garde. AAA’s collection is a dynamic, growing body of material intended to reflect contemporary artistic practice and developments of Asia within an international context.
- The Smithsonian Learning Lab: Millions of digital resources from across the Smithsonian's museums, research centers, archives, libraries, and more.
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