**Recently, Senator McCoy of the Iowa State Legislature suggested that the University of Iowa sell their Pollock Mural to help keep the cost of tuition low for students in these tough economic times, especially given the devastating flood of last summer. This was my response to him.
Dear Senator McCoy,
I was disappointed to read your comments in the Iowa City Press-Citizen yesterday suggesting once again that selling Jackson Pollock's famed Mural would be an idea worth considering in order to help defray the massive costs of flood recovery here in Eastern Iowa. Nothing could be further from the truth- in fact, such an idea would be a fiscal catastrophe for both Eastern Iowa and the state of Iowa as a whole.
Now is not the time to be selling off one of this state's most precious and valuable assets and one of the greatest paintings in the history of American art. In fact, it may seem contradictory in the face of such bleak economic times for Iowa and for the country as a whole, but this is in fact the time to invest more money into not only this magnificent painting, but into Eastern Iowa as a whole. As a security guard working at the University of Iowa Museum of Art during my time as an undergraduate there (2001-2006) I was fortunate to learn so much about this painting and about the University's collection as a whole and I can assure you Senator, that the incredible collection of the University of Iowa is one of the best kept secrets in the entire state- and it is incredible that the Board of Regents kept the Museum in the building it was in for nearly three decades instead of investing in a new facility which could have helped bring people from all across the country to Iowa and help the University of Iowa attract more students.
This is perhaps the most important thing of all! With the art programs currently housed in temporary facilities, we are at risk of seeing one of the proudest and most illustrious programs at the University of Iowa suffer real damage to its prestige. And the loss of Mural would only accelerate that. Selling it is not something that should be done lightly, for once it is sold- if we could even achieve an estimated $200 million value in market times so bleak as these- it would be gone forever and the Art Program at the University, the University of Iowa and indeed the state of Iowa would suffer as a result.
It may be difficult to see how the state could suffer if we sell what to many would only be seen as a painting- but Mural is the crown jewel of an incredible collection at the University of Iowa that needs to be better introduced to the state of Iowa as a whole. Far too few people (in Iowa and across the country) realize just what an incredible collection the University has! Not only do we have Mural, we have one of the best collections of African Art in the entire country- right here in Iowa. We have paintings by such masters as Grant Wood, Henri Matisse and many others. And we have a proud legacy for the entire state of Iowa in the art programs at the University of Iowa that should be celebrated, not auctioned off to the highest bidder! Mauricio Lasansky helped to pioneer advances in the medium of print-making that changed it forever- he could have gone anywhere in the world, but he came to Iowa. Virginia Meyers, another noted professor of the art program, actually championed an entirely new medium of foil printing- inventing new technologies that I believe the University still holds the patents for to this day. One of the University's first advanced degrees was awarded to Eve Drewelowe in the field of studio arts!
As you can see, this is a renowned art program with an incredible collection of art that deserves to be protected and invested in as a part of any long term strategies towards flood recovery in Eastern Iowa. We need something to help bring people to these communities that have been devastated by floods. Instead of pursuing things like an indoor rainforest in Coralville we should instead invest in a world class facility to help showcase the world class programs and collections here at the University of Iowa. I firmly believe that the right facility in the right place to showcase Mural and the collection would bring more people to Eastern Iowa than would come if we sold the painting for some short term monetary gains at the expense of some very long term pain.
The people of Iowa deserve a place to see this incredible painting and discover the best kept secret of this entire state! That we, the people of Iowa have tucked away in Iowa City an excellent collection of art that every Iowan should get to see.
Selling Mural would deny people that chance- and cost Eastern Iowa more money in the long term that it would seem to save in the short term.
I hope you have the opportunity to view this incredible collection and realize how important an asset it could be for this state and why it deserves to be respected and protected.
yours,
Tom Nixon
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