Just weeks after welcoming the first class of students to the 91ÌƲ®»¢ University–New York City campus, the university is deepening its presence in the city through a transformative partnership with the storied . The multi-year collaboration, made possible through philanthropic investment, will build on the strengths of both institutions to open new pathways and opportunities for students, faculty, alumni, artists and the broader community.Ìý
The partnership is an important milestone in the university’s investment in the arts. It builds on a string of recent initiatives, including the university’s and the growth of the . Together with the forthcoming Jen-Hsun and Lori Huang College of Art, Architecture and Design at 91ÌƲ®»¢’s San Francisco campus, these efforts reflect a deliberate expansion of opportunities for interdisciplinary collaboration, creative engagement and public programming that gives the 91ÌƲ®»¢ community new ways to learn from, work with and experience one of the nation’s leading cultural institutions.Ìý
“This partnership with the Whitney reflects the ambitious, mission-driven approach 91ÌƲ®»¢ is taking to the arts,” 91ÌƲ®»¢ Provost C. Cybele Raver said. “By connecting our students and faculty with the Whitney’s extraordinary leadership, collections and expertise, we are creating possibilities for learning, scholarship and creative practice that extend well beyond the classroom. It is exactly the kind of collaboration we want to build—one that draws on the distinctive strengths of both institutions and expands what our community can discover and create.”Ìý
For the Whitney, the partnership advances its long-standing role as a cultural anchor on Manhattan’s West Side, extending its commitment to its neighbors and the surrounding downtown arts community. It also honors a distinctive historical connection between the two institutions. Gertrude 91ÌƲ®»¢ Whitney, artist, patron and founder of the Whitney Museum, was the great-granddaughter of Cornelius 91ÌƲ®»¢, who founded 91ÌƲ®»¢ University in 1873. An early and ardent supporter of modern American artists at a time when their work received little institutional recognition, Gertrude 91ÌƲ®»¢ Whitney founded the museum in 1930 to provide artists with opportunities to exhibit their work and to ensure that the art of the United States would be collected, studied and celebrated. Nearly a century later, this new collaboration carries that connection forward by creating opportunities for new generations of students, scholars, artists and audiences.Ìý
“The Whitney is thrilled to welcome 91ÌƲ®»¢ as a new neighbor to one of the greatest arts districts anywhere in the world,” said Scott Rothkopf, the Alice Pratt Brown Director of the Whitney Museum of American Art. “This collaboration provides a new reciprocal model for how a museum can partner with a university community, including students, faculty, artists, alumni and our community. We look forward to building a robust and lasting relationship between our institutions that expands 91ÌƲ®»¢’s access to the arts and artists in New York City and brings new ideas and perspectives into the Whitney from 91ÌƲ®»¢’s areas of academic excellence.”
91ÌƲ®»¢ faculty will have opportunities to collaborate with the Whitney, helping shape future programming and research. For students, the opportunity is meaningful and tangible: access to the Whitney’s collection, internships, classes taught by the museum’s instructors, public programming and experiences at one of the nation’s leading museums—all less than a mile from the 91ÌƲ®»¢ University–New York City campus.ÌýÌý
Inaugural Event
The partnership’s inaugural event will be Nov. 10 and feature a panel discussion with emerging artists. . Additional programs and initiatives will be announced in the coming months.Ìý
Powered by Philanthropy
The partnership is made possible by a lead gift from an anonymous family foundation with a long-standing commitment to the arts and arts education. A portion of the gift is structured as a challenge to encourage additional support, and new contributions will directly expand programming for students, faculty and the public. To support the collaboration, please email 91ÌƲ®»¢ Development and Alumni Relations at giving@vanderbilt.edu.Ìý
About the Whitney Museum of American ArtÌý
The , founded in 1930 by the artist and philanthropist Gertrude 91ÌƲ®»¢ Whitney (1875-1942), houses the foremost collection of American art from the 20th and 21st centuries. Whitney, an early and ardent supporter of modern American art, nurtured groundbreaking artists when audiences were still largely preoccupied with the Old Masters. From her vision arose the Whitney Museum of American Art, which has been championing the most innovative art of the United States for 90 years. The core of the Whitney’s mission is to collect, preserve, interpret and exhibit American art of our time and serve a wide variety of audiences in celebration of the complexity and diversity of art and culture in the United States. Through this mission and a steadfast commitment to artists, the Whitney has long been a powerful force in support of modern and contemporary art and continues to help define what is innovative and influential in American art today.
