This is the first of a series of blog posts that will explore exhibits during the 1960s at the Museum of Art at the University of Oregon, known today as the Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art.  As part of the Documenting UO History Project, this series will investigate three major types of exhibits: the Statewide Services Program, national exhibits that traveled to the Museum, and international exhibits that the Museum displayed. The University Archives collection of the Museum’s records, cross referenced with the Jordan Schnitzer’s current holdings, reveal a unique institutional history of the Museum, its exhibits, and its employees. Though the Jordan Schnitzer’s current focus is on Asian art, this project will focus on a variety of other kinds of exhibit subjects.

Did you know that art doesn’t sit still? Museums are always on the move. Pieces of art and large exhibits often travel around to different regions so that large numbers of people can see them. Because art means different things to each viewer, it is important to make art freely available to the public. The Museum of Art at the University of Oregon began to circulate exhibitions free of charge through its Statewide Services program in 1965. It could do so through the Friends of the Museum, which helped with the financial backing of the program. Statewide Services coordinator Dennis Gould and Museum employees organized the distribution of traveling exhibits. They also taught community organizations how best to use the exhibits in their regions. This blog post will highlight the methods the Museum used to circulate their art in the state of Oregon.

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