For the Future Assembles the Best of the UMFA’s Diverse Collection

Media Contact:
​Emma Ryder
​Utah Museum of Fine Arts, Director of Marketing the Communications
​emma.ryder@umfa.utah.edu
​801-581-7328

For Immediate Release

The Utah Museum of Fine Arts on the University of Utah campus (UMFA) will showcase the most notable artworks added to its collection over the past 25 years in For the Future: Collecting at the UMFA 2001-2026, opening on August 29, 2026. The exhibition features a selection of the most notable art added to the UMFA’s collection since the opening of the Marcia and John Price Museum Building in the summer of 2001.

“We are delighted to celebrate 25 years of the beautiful Marcia and John Price Museum Building. It’s a lovely moment of reflection about where the UMFA is today and the many ways in which we will continue to grow with and serve our community,” said Gretchen Dietrich, the Utah Museum of Fine Arts Marcia and John Price Executive Director.

For the Future is both a celebration of a milestone and an illumination of the Museum’s mission and work. “In curating this exhibition, we were deliberate in choosing works that tell interesting stories about how and why the UMFA collects and preserves all kinds of art for the greater good,” said Alisa McCusker, Senior Curator and Curator of European and American Art at the UMFA.

The exhibition’s texts and accompanying digital materials include recorded reflections from living artists like Jann Haworth and Arleene Correa Valencia along with stories of how and why the UMFA acquires art. For the Future contains new work on view for the first time, including a tapestry by Diné artist Melissa Cody, to long-time favorites by Yayoi Kusama and Faith Ringgold.

Of the objects on view in For the Future Dietrich said, “It is a treasure trove of important and thought-provoking art works and demonstrates so beautifully just what a collecting institution like the UMFA can do for its community. We are deeply committed to caring for, exhibiting and interpreting these amazing objects for our community, now and long into the future.”

The UMFA’s collection has grown extensively over the last 25 years to more than 22,000 objects, the largest of its kind in the region. An encyclopedic museum like the UMFA features objects from across many time periods, mediums, and styles instead of focusing on a specific niche.

“We're thrilled about this exhibition showcasing some of the most important art the UMFA has acquired since 2001 as well as favorite artworks that have meant a lot to visitors and donors over the years. The selection covers such a variety of artistic expression representing diverse cultures from the ancient world to today,” said McCusker.

The 2001 move into the Marcia and John Price Museum Building from the UMFA’s former home in the University of Utah’s Art and Architecture Center was made possible by a generous gift from Marcia and John Price. At the time the gift was the largest ever made to a cultural institution in Utah. The new building, designed by Machado and Silvetti of Cambridge, Massachusetts with local partners Prescott Muir Architects, won the 2000 Honor Award for Urban Design from the Boston Society of Architects and the 2000 Merit Award for Excellence in Architecture from the New England chapter of the American Institute of Architects.

The larger space offered the opportunity to grow the UMFA’s community impact as well. The diversity of art found throughout the UMFA’s galleries is used by museum educators to teach thousands of K-12 and university students from across Utah every year. The UMFA is often the first museum for many young visitors.

For the Future will feature unique hands-on educational components along with tours and workshops throughout the exhibition’s run to teach visitors how a museum works and connect to the purpose of caring for a collection in perpetuity for the public good.

“I’m deeply grateful to the many people who have played a significant role in making the UMFA all that it is today–our wonderful staff, our dedicated Board of Directors and generous donors, our colleagues across the University of Utah Campus and the broader community, and our beloved members, students, and visitors.” Said Dietrich.

For the Future: Collecting at the UMFA 2001-2026 will be on view at the Utah Museum of Fine Arts from August 29 through January 3, 2027. The Museum will host a celebration gala and exhibition preview on Thursday, August 27. More information can be found at umfa.utah.edu.

The Marcia and John Price Museum Building. Image courtesy of the Utah Museum of Fine Arts.Building dedication ceremony for the Marcia and John Price Museum Building, courtesy of the Utah Museum of Fine Arts.

Unknown artist, 19th- 20th century, French, The Whirlpool Naruto in Awa Province, late 1880s/early 1890s, after Ando Hiroshige (1797-1858), Japanese, Oil on canvas, Purchased with funds from Friends of the Art Museum, UMFA1980.169Shiva as Lord of Dance (Nataraja), Southern India, Chola dynasty, circa 12th–13th century, Bronze, Gift of the Christensen Fund to commemorate founding Director E. Frank Sanguinetti’s 84th birthday, UMFA2001.11.1James T. Harwood, American, 1860–1940, Preparation for Dinner (Préparation pour le dîner), 1891–1892, Oil on canvas, Transferred from the collection of the A. Ray Olpin University Union; conserved with funds from the Ann K. Stewart Docent and Volunteer Conservation Fund, UMFA2003.14.1

Angela Ellsworth, American, born 1964, Seer Bonnet X, 2010, Pearl corsage pins, fabric, and steel, Purchased with funds from the UMFA Young Benefactors and The Phyllis Cannon Wattis Endowment Fund, UMFA2010.16.1–3Dmitri Baltermants, 1912-1990, Russian, "In Moscow's Sky": Construction workers on the famous "SEV" (Council for Economic Cooperation) building, n.d. printed 2003 Gelatin silver print, Gift of Dr. James E. and Debra Pearl to the Dr. James E. and Debra Pearl Photograph Collection, UMFA2010.20.22Jann Hayworth, born 1942, American, The White Charm Bracelet, Cotton fabric, Purchased with funds from the UMFA Young Benefactors, UMFA 2011.25.1A-C

Tacita Dean, British, born 1965, JG (offset), 2013, 14 archival offset prints, Purchased with funds from The Phyllis Cannon Wattis Endowment Fund and The Paul L. and Phyllis C. Wattis Fund, UMFA2014.7.1A-N

White ground oil flask (lekythos), Attributed to the Quadrate painter, Greece, Athens, Classic, period 450-420 BCE, Terracotta with glaze, Purchased with funds from the Hayden H. Huston Fund and the John Preston Creer and Mary Elizabeth Brockbank Creer Memorial Fund, UMFA2019.6.1Fritz Scholder, American and Luiseño (Payómkawichum), 1937-2005, Indian Waiting in Washington, DC, 1977, Oil on canvas, Gift of Tyrene Christopulos, UMFA2023.17.1

Arleene Correa Valencia, Mexican American, born 1993, Papi Esperamos Que Esta Navidad Te La Pases Muy Bien, Pero Sobre Todo, No Te Olvides De Nosotros. Que Nosotros No Te Olvidamos. Dios Quiera Y Pronto Puédanos Estar Juntos Todos. / Daddy, I Hope That You Have A Good Christmas, But Most Importantly, Don't Forget About Us. We Won’t Forget About You. God Willing, We'll All Be Together Soon., 2022, textile, Purchased with funds from the Phyllis Cannon Wattis Endowment Fund, UMFA2024.2.1Spencer Finch, American, born 1962, Great Salt Lake and Vicinity, 2017, 1,132 ready-made Pantone chips and pencil, Commissioned by the Utah Museum of Fine ArtsLouise Howland King Cox, American, 1865–1945, Blue and White, 1904, Oil on canvas, Purchased with funds from the Helene Druke Shaw Endowment, UMFA2024.13.1

nstallation view of the portrait hall at the Utah Museum of Fine arts, 2025.Melissa Cody, Diné (Navajo), born 1983, Scaling the Caverns, 2023, textile, Purchased with funds from the Phyllis Cannon Wattis Endowment Fund, UMFA2024.4.1Architectural render of the Marcia and John Price Museum Building, courtesy of the Utah Museum of Fine Arts.

Ground-breaking ceremony for the Marcia and John Price Museum Building, courtesy of the Utah Museum of Fine Arts.Spencer Finch, American, born 1962, Great Salt Lake and Vicinity, 2017, 1,132 ready-made Pantone chips and pencil, Commissioned by the Utah Museum of Fine Arts

The Utah Museum of Fine Arts is located on the University of Utah campus in the Marcia and John Price Museum Building at 410 Campus Center Drive. The UMFA’s mission is to inspire critical dialogue and illuminate the role of art in our lives. For more information visit ​ www.umfa.utah.edu.