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From the Director
The McDonough
Museum of Art was designed by the nationally known and award winning duo,
architects
Charles
Gwathmey and Robert Siegel. The
Museum was built in 1991 and in the same year Gwathmey & Siegel completed
commissions for Harvard University, Cornell University, Solomon R. Guggenheim
Museum, Euro Disney, and Steven Spielberg. The McDonough stands as a discreet
architectural object, consisting of rigorous geometry and intricate multistory
spaces filled with light.
Within this modernist jewel, the McDonough Museum of Art functions as
a center for contemporary ideas, art, education and community. It is our
mission as a University Museum dedicated to the display and commission
of contemporary art to function as a catalyst for new knowledge, to play
a central role in the exploration of the aesthetic dimension of human
intelligence, and to substantially affect the way the arts contribute
to education and public life. In pursuit of this mission we have established
the following programmatic commitments:
SEED.LAB describes
the critical function of the Museum as a learning, teaching and experimental
space for students, faculty and alumni. In this way we serve the education
and outreach mission of the Departmentof Art through exhibitions and projects.
Regional Projects Series–Exhibitions of Artists working
in the region.
These projects are meant to honor and document regional artistic ingenuity.
Artists from Ohio, Michigan, Virginia, New York have been featured in
the series so far. The museum has published 5 catalogues in the series and six limited edition t-shirts.
National & International Artists & Exhibitions
We are developing ongoing relationships
with national and international artists and art institutions in New York,
Los Angeles, Chicago, Berlin, Beijing, and Havana to develop exhibitions
and exchanges. In these efforts we are working on projects with the Center
for Working Class Studies and the International Studies Program.
Campus & Community Projects
Connecting to campus and community
initiatives through partnerships like the Regional Scholastic Art Awards
program, the Sacred Landmarks Project, Underground Railroad Project, REA+CH, Youth Media, Mahoning Cultural Collaborative and the Summer Arts Festival.
The Scholastic Art Awards Program is the most prestigious arts recognition and scholarship program of its kind in the country, the McDonough Museum of Art is the regional affiliate for this national program. The Northeastern Ohio Regional Scholastic Art Awards includes students grades 7-12 from Mahoning, Trumbull, Columbiana and Ashtabula counties. The 2008 program included 80 art educators from 66 participating schools and included over 600 works of art displayed at the McDonough Museum by approximately 575 area students. In the past five years we have at various times implemented billboard and t-shirt competitions in order to give a larger number of students an opportunity to participate.
REA+CH
is a residency program sponsoring Art + Community = Collaborations
The residency program advances the role artists and community members
play in addressing human and social issues in the Mahoning Valley. It
functions as a think-tank for community development wherein artists, community
representatives, experts and students benefit from an enriching exchange
of ideas and skills.
The Youth Media Program
was established in 2004 and has been very successful in opening up opportunities
for abused, neglected, and dependent children to work creatively and freely
with video cameras and computer imaging programs. The youth work with
visiting artists, mentors in the community, students, and alumni from
Youngstown State University. The leaders of the workshops teach creative
and critical thinking skills while developing a strong sense of community.
The youth involved in the workshops learn how to operate camcorders, digital
cameras and computer programs to conceptualize and create their own projects.
The Mahoning Cultural Collaborative (MCC) exists to develop relationships among all local museums, arts organizations and galleries, science centers and park services to promote and market the culture, history, environment and ecology of the Mahoning Valley. Participating institutions include the Butler Institute of American Art, Children’s Museum of the Valley, Loghurst Historic Home, Mahoning Valley Historical Society-Arms Family Museum, Mill Creek MetroParks-Fellows Riverside Gardens-Ford Nature Center-Lanterman’s Mill-MetroParks Farm, Museum of Industry & Labor Public Library of Youngstown & Mahoning County, Youngstown State University-McDonough Museum of Art-Melnick Medical Museum-Smith Mineral Museum-SMARTS – Students Motivated by the Arts and the Ward Beecher Planetrium. The MCC created a teacher’s guide to help make our educational programs more accessible to educators in our region. Our goal is to strengthen the foundations of our institutions by giving the teachers and students active educational experiences. If you are interested in a PDF formate of the teacher’s guide please click here or contact Robyn Maas at remaas@ysu.edu and we will be happy to send one to you.
The Summer Festival of the Arts is collaboration between Youngstown State University and the local and regional arts community. Designed to promote the diversity of art in the Mahoning Valley, the event equally welcomes regional and national fine and performing artists. Participation by area ethnic and cultural institutions makes available opportunities for positve interactions between patrons and the community. For more information go to http://www.ysu.edu/sfa/ to find out information on this great event.
Visual Literacy & The Visual Thinking Strategy
The McDonough welcomed over 30 tour groups this past year who all participated
in the Visual Thinking Strategy (VTS), a non-intrusive method of group
interaction linked to the development of aesthetic learning. The Visual
Thinking Strategy trains individuals to make an evidence-founded, reasoned
argument, based on careful looking. It uses art to teach thinking, communication
skills and visual literacy. It measurably increases observation skills,
evidential reasoning, and speculative abilities, and the ability to find
multiple solutions to complex problems for all students, from challenged
and non-English language learners to high achievers. Finally it encourages
regular art museum visits to underscore connections to art and to integrate
our community’s resources into students’ lives. For more information
contact Visual Understanding in Education at www.vue.org.
The Ohio Arts Council helped fund in part our organization with state tax dollars to encourage economic growth, educational excellence and cultural enrichment for all Ohioans.
As a unit within the College of Fine and Performing Arts we join the Performing
Arts Series to form a truly vital front for community outreach. The McDonough
Museum is free and open to the public. It is your University Museum, your
community resource, meeting place, free to think and debate space, or
just take a break place . . .
a haven for all.
We hope to see you soon and often!
Leslie A. Brothers, Director
labrothers@ysu.edu
History
In 1986, Dr. John J. McDonough,
a prominent collector of American Art, and a dedicated member of the community,
offered Youngstown State University the opportunity to build their own
museum. The McDonough Museum of Art, a division of the College of Fine
and Performing Arts opened its doors to the public in 1991. For thirteen
years the museum has grown to become a vital center for contemporary art,
education and community serving both the University and the region. Each
year the Museum presents a diverse and critical survey of contemporary
art in all media through exhibitions of work by national and international
artists as well as Department of Art faculty and students.
Mission Statement
The mission of the McDonough
Museum of Art reinforces the mission of the College of Fine and Performing
Arts and Youngstown State University in recognizing the need to support
both cultural values and academic excellence. As a unique center for
public engagement, the McDonough Museum of Art translates the University’s
greater goals of teaching, research and service into collaboration,
education and community.
Through the process of collaboration we seek to encourage flexible,
research-based relationships with artists, scholars, university students
and members of the community. As a center for education we seek to promote
learning through communication and shared experience within an expanding
community outreach that recognizes the value of visual literacy and
the development of intelligent, critical and creative thinking skills
among our K-12 audiences.
Located in the Mahoning
Valley and within the city of Youngstown we are acutely aware that many
members of this community are at risk and underserved in multiple capacities.
It is the moral mission and ethical responsibility of this institution
to embrace and develop ongoing relevant strategies for understanding
and engaging all of our diverse audiences. We believe community means
a commitment to shared responsibility for the definition of common goals,
for Youngstown, the Mahonig Valley, the State of Ohio, the United States
and beyond.
It is ultimately our mission as a university museum dedicated to the
display and commission of contemporary art to function as a catalyst
for new knowledge, to play a central role in the exploration of the
aesthetic dimension of human intelligence, and to substantially affect
the way the arts contribute to education and public life.
Goals
In pursuit of its mission,
the McDonough Museum of Art subscribes to the following Goals:
1 | To establish the fundamental importance and role of art, design,
art history, art education and museum studies within the university
and beyond, and to position the arts and related disciplines as conduits
for cross-disciplinary collaboration and exchange.
The Museum seeks to offer the University and the Region a larger
range of choices for the application of talent and intelligence through
teaching visual literacy. Visual education offers broadened pedagogical
choices and more fully equips the body politic for making relevant contributions
to the social, political, cultural, technological, and commercial needs
of the State. The Museum seeks to integrate the experience and understanding
of art and design with all cultural and social segments, including commerce
and industry.
2 | To continuously examine the roles of artists, designers, art historians,
art educators, and Museum Professionals in support of a vital and tolerant
society.
The Museum seeks to offer a larger range of choices for the application
of talent and intelligence. By questioning and challenging the role
of artists, designers, and Museum professionals, the Museum, together
with the College of Fine and Performing Arts will join others leading
the way in refocusing the educational paradigm for a new century.
3 | To promote and honor the fundamental worth of all peoples and cultures.
The Museum works toward creating a world in which all peoples and
cultures are given voice as valid participants in an emerging globally
interdependent society. The Museum values all cultures, their customs,
and lore, and gives respect to differing beliefs. The Museum recognizes
the need for equity among generations, genders and ethnic groups in
accessing services and opportunities for sharing constructive and productive
responsibility in the transfer of knowledge and skill.
4 | To promote respect for the environment and the human ecology.
The Museum understands its responsibility in preparing students
for sustainable futures. Sustainable futures involve informed decision
making which maintains a balance among all aspects of the natural and
man-made world. This requires public participation and policy making.
The Museum equips students to become involved leaders in this crucial
public dialogue. Economic, technological, and political choices inevitably
involve moral responsibility.