Davidow Collection Enhances the UT Dallas Campus.
It is my goal to have art in every building at UT Dallas,? says Joan Davidow. She is doing her part to make that a reality. The first installment of 75 works of the Davidow Collection opened this past autumn in the Edith O?Donnell Arts and Technology (ATEC) Building and the Erik Jonsson Academic Building.
Art and education are encoded in Davidow?s DNA. With an MFA in painting, Davidow?s career began as a teacher in Florida. One of her first jobs after moving to Dallas was hosting and reviewing art for a weekly program on KERA. Her museum career launched at around the same time, when she began a two-year McDermott Curatorial Internship at the Dallas Museum of Art. As this position ended, the Arlington Museum was looking for a new director. In 1991, Davidow assumed that position and over the next 10 years transformed it into a vital force for cutting-edge art in North Texas, earning it national attention in ArtNews. While at Arlington, Davidow heard nationally renowned art educator Philip Yenawine speak about his program, Visual Thinking Strategies (VTS). Inspired by his work, Davidow created the nationally recognized program, Art Around the Corner, for local school children.
In 2001, she became the director of the Dallas Visual Art Center. She rebranded the organization, transforming it into the Dallas Contemporary and moved it from its Swiss Avenue location into the heart of the then-burgeoning Design District. Her deep-rooted commitment to education continued to infuse her work. Her educational and exhibition programs garnered attention nationally and internationally. It was here that she created ArtThink?, a participatory program designed to engage students by presenting them with an image and then asking them to write their impressions of it. She also changed the way labels were written by including an open-ended question at the bottom of each one. During this time, Davidow curated 75 exhibitions and advanced the careers of 300 artists.
It is impossible to spend so much time around contemporary art without managing to acquire some. And so it is that Davidow amassed a collection that spans every medium and style, from figurative work to minimal abstraction. Davidow has been attracted to works that have ?winked? at her, work that is ?adventurous and thoughtful, crisp and clever.? Many of the artists in her collection had their first museum exhibitions with her. Walking through the halls at ATEC, with the work of artists such as Linda Ridgway, Ann Stautberg, Tom Orr, Vernon Fisher, and other stars in the Texas art firmament, suggests just how good an eye Davidow has always had.
She meticulously oversaw the UT Dallas?s installation and wrote each label, with didactic information as well as her own musings on the work. And at the bottom of each one an engaging question is posed. According to Lisa Kramer Morgan, Director of Development and Alumni Relations for Arts and Humanities, these questions have been interesting conversation starters. John Pomara, an artist in the collection and professor at the university, sees these conversations as a benefit to the campus, saying, ?That?s what universities are there for, to dialogue and exchange ideas.?
A university traditionally dedicated to engineering may seem an odd choice for a contemporary art collection. Davidow came to the decision methodically. She knew that museums place a small portion of their collections on view. She wanted her entire collection to be seen, ideally in an educational setting. She had two epiphanies in making her selection. The first came when the late Frank Ribelin invited her to Jesuit High School, where his collection lines the halls. Davidow was impressed. She says, ?These are the leaders of tomorrow. They are looking at art every day of their lives. They will change the course of art.? The second epiphany came when she and a Houston colleague embarked on a trip to the Northeast, where she was taken with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Unlike other college campuses, with their university museums, MIT has its collection placed around the campus, throughout buildings and courtyards. She knew that this is what she wanted for her collection.
UT Dallas became a logical choice for many reasons. Several longtime instructors, such as Greg Metz, Pomara, and Dean Terry, Davidow says, ?co-curated early tech works with me.? Pomara, whose large untitled diptych oversees the entryway, was included in Pure Paint, Davidow?s first exhibition as a museum director in Arlington. And, she says, ?Greg Metz always brought his students to meet with me,? so that she could give them advice as to the different career possibilities in the art world.
In many ways, the college is very much a part of Davidow?s family. Sally Glass, her stepdaughter, is a graduate of the UT Dallas as well as a CentralTrak alumna. And while both of Davidow?s sons are art collectors, her son Seth has also begun donating work to the university, including the large Pomara painting at the entry.
Pomara painting at the entry. The university has enthusiastically embraced the gift, which ultimately will include more than 150 pieces. Pomara, whose friendship with Davidow blossomed when she was at Arlington, says, ?The collection is basically a diary of Joan?s life.? He adds, ?It brings a sense of pride and prestige to the buildings.?
The timing of Davidow?s gift also coincides with the October opening of the Edith O?Donnell Institute of Art History, helmed by Dr. Richard Brettell, the Margaret M. McDermott Distinguished Chair of Art and Aesthetic Studies and Edith O?Donnell Distinguished Chair. He sees the collection as transformative, saying, ?I know in my gut that the two UT Dallas buildings that will receive works of art from Joan Davidow will be transformed in ways that none of us, including Joan, can imagine. It is very, very exciting.?
With the collection in place, the dialogue will continue. Lance King, a graduate student in the school?s ATEC program, is currently developing a geo-based web application that will provide information, via smartphone, about a work as one nears it. And the paragraphs that Davidow wrote about each piece will be available online, thanks to the technology students in the ATEC program.
Having entrusted her collection to the university, Davidow is hardly slowing down. She has developed and continues to teach four classes through SMU?s Master of Liberal Arts program. Using the same interactive techniques that inspired her 25 years ago, she is converting her students into contemporary art aficionados. When she spoke of ArtThink?, she said, ?I wanted everyone to have an AHA! moment. The way I teach at SMU is the same thing.?
She is also working on a project with her son, Seth. He recently bought a building in the Design District, which they plan to run as an experimental space called Site 131. it will feature four pairs of artists per year, from Texas and elsewhere, who are addressing similar themes. ?I?m always interested in the present and what it says about life,? says Davidow. She will serve as the curator and co-director.
The collection is a culmination of all that Davidow has achieved. She muses, ?I get to nurture the community that nurtured me. I think this is one of the most important things I have done in my lifetime.? –P