Besides Washington State University’s many permanent collections in its museums, the university also has an extensive collection of outdoor artwork.
On the Pullman campus, pieces range from a life-size bronze book-figure Bookin’ by Terry Allen to Palouse Columns by Robert Maki to The Technicolor Heart, a fourteen-foot painted bronze work by Jim Dine.
A large part of WSU’s public art collection is made possible by the percent-for-art Art in Public Places program of the Washington State Arts Commission.
Take a virtual tour of the outdoor* sculptures and other installations by using this ArcGIS map which shows the locations, photos (click on thumbnails), and provenance of the artwork with links:
*WSU’s extensive indoor artwork across the Pullman campus is currently being updated and re-cataloged. In the near future we hope to have a similar virtual tour map of these numerable works.
View the impressive public art at all of WSU’s
campuses (here are the links):
Everett
WSU Everett resides on the EvCC campus which has its own extensive collection of art, of which much can be viewed publicly. When visiting, make sure to also check out the Schack Art Center in downtown Everett.
Museums and collections
Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art WSU has 4000+ art objects and several permanent collections, including the Ernest O. Holland Collection given by the university’s fourth president and the Charles Orton Collection, given by a former regent.
Others are the Goya and Daumier Collections, Chaplin Woodcuts, Consortium Collections, Meyer Shapiro Print Collection, Elwood Collection and Marian E. Smith Collection of Northwest glass art. Other permanent collections contain works by Northwest artists Worth D. Griffin, Mark Tobey, Kenneth Callahan, Margaret Tomkins, and former faculty members from WSU and the University of Washington.
Beginning in 2005, the museum began organizing its own traveling exhibitions. These exhibitions, including works by Roy Lichtenstein, Gaylen Hansen, and Chris Jordan, have been seen across the country.
The museum’s current exhibit, Your Collection: Celebrating 50 Years (August 20–December 13, 2024), commemorates the museum’s first five decades as seen through the permanent collection.
Several other museums and collections are found on the WSU Pullman campus. One of the largest is the Charles R. Conner Museum of Natural History, exhibiting more than 700 mounts of birds and mammals, and possessing more than 65,000 research specimens. The Connor Museum has its roots in an 1894 gift of the state of Washington’s exhibits from the Chicago’s World’s Fair, encouraged by then president of the Board of Regents Charles R. Conner. Located on the first floor of Abelson Hall (click here for visitor information).
The Museum of Anthropology, with archaeological and ethnographic collections, also draws visitors. The museum has varied exhibits and special events. It also has a collection of objects representing the culture of Native American tribes in the Inland Northwest, and is an official repository for archaeological collections from Eastern Washington.
Also at WSU are the Harold E. Culver Collection with fossils of pre-historic animals; the Lyle and Lela Jacklin Collection of Silicified Wood & Minerals; and S. Elroy McCaw Fluorescent Mineral Display.
Research collections include an Historic Costume and Textiles Collection, the Maurice T. James Entomological Collection, the Marion Ownbey Herbarium, the Mycological Herbarium, and the Henry W. Smith Soil Monolith Collection (PDF).
Sourced from Washington State University and Wikipedia
We dedicate our virtual tour map to long-time museum docent H. Clare Wiser. He was a WSU professor of mathematics emeritus who retired in 1996. Then, for many years, he hosted free public art tours on the Pullman campus. Thank you, professor Wiser!
