After much ado, Crystal Bridges to share in Fisk collection

BENTONVILLE – The deal was a longtime coming, but in the end, all parties benefited.

The Stieglitz Art Collection, bequeathed in 1949 to Fisk University by artist Georgia O’Keeffe, will remain intact and be viewed, appreciated, and studied by a wide public audience now that a long-term collection-sharing relationship is finalized between the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art and Fisk in Nashville, Tenn.

After more than a decade of legal wrangling, the agreement was finalized by the courts and the Tennessee Attorney General on June 13 and filed by the Davidson County Chancery Court on July 31. The Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art and Fisk University each now own a 50% interest in the collection, which will be exhibited at both institutions at rotating two-year intervals.

The agreement will allow the works to remain on display at Fisk for two uninterrupted years out of every four, thus allowing every Fisk student the opportunity to view or study the artwork for a period during the student’s academic career. The two years of exposure at Crystal Bridges carries just as much weight. More than a half a million visitors have crossed Crystal Bridges’ threshhold since it opened Nov. 11.

“We are looking forward to working with Fisk University as we begin this partnership and eventually present the Stieglitz Collection to the very large — and growing —Crystal Bridges audience,” said Don Bacigalupi, executive director of Crystal Bridges.

An exhibition schedule outlining the artworks’ allotted time at Crystal Bridges has yet to be announced.

The sharing agreement will also enable Crystal Bridges and Fisk to co-administer the ongoing care and maintenance of the works of art, advance the educational scope of the collection for study and public appreciation, and to expand the artistic legacy of the artists whose works are included in the collection.

“We’re feeling great about the future of the Stieglitz Collection. The Fisk-Crystal Bridges partnership keeps the collection intact and ensures its long-term preservation and access,” said Alice Walton, Crystal Bridges’ board chairman.

In a release issued by Fisk University, Hazel O’Leary, president of Fisk, said, “We are, obviously, very pleased that this case was resolved in a manner that will ensure the future financial security of Fisk with most of the funds being used to strengthen Fisk’s endowment.”

The Alfred Stieglitz Collection of Modern American and European Art consists of 101 objects, 97 of which came from her late husband’s art collection and four that were owned by O'Keeffe. The Stieglitz Collection contains a survey of modern art from the late nineteenth to mid-twentieth century, including those by such masters as Paul Cezanne, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Pablo Picasso and Diego Rivera, who were revered by modern American artists such as Marsden Hartley, Arthur Dove, and Charles Demuth, who are also represented in the collection. Additionally, the collection includes the iconic painting by Georgia O’Keeffe, The Radiator Building.