In order to bring Swiss artist Zimoun to the University of Idaho Prichard Art Gallery Director Roger Rowley had to raise $15,000. His solution? U&I Give.
As of Tuesday, 69 people had donated, raising $780 more than what was needed for the exhibit.
According to the U&I Give website, Zimoun produces installations specific to each site and uses common objects to build “architecturally minded platforms of sound.”
His exhibit at the Prichard will open summer 2019 in accordance with the annual Moscow Artwalk and extending into September, Rowley said.
“(He does) a lot of in-studio development and creates what will be installed,” Rowley said. “They do that all in their studio, and then we have to pull together what they’re sending us with what we source locally.”
Rowley said Zimoun has high status in the contemporary art world and he feels fortunate they agreed to host an exhibition in Moscow, since many high-profile artists might have skipped over the Prichard, believing it wouldn’t elevate their careers.
He said Zimoun produces work that takes advantage of sound and motion, meaning video is needed to capture the work.
“The Prichard has a history of working with contemporary artists both nationally and internationally,” Rowley said. “Our budget constraints are such that that’s more regional and national. But we like to think expansively about what we do, and in this case, we are stretching every research and capacity we have to pull of something that has never been done here before.”
Rowley said the money donated through the U&I Give fundraiser will provide for installation costs and allow for student involvement in the project.
He said he hopes six to 12 students — ideally art, architecture or engineering students — will take advantage of the opportunity to assist in installing the exhibition.
“There will be opportunities for some student involvement in the project,” Rowley said. “We’re still formulating exactly how that’s going to work. It may take the form of a special topics summer school class. It may be just a volunteer opportunity. But we will need an installation crew.”
Rowley said crowdfunding was a great way to raise money for the exhibit, and U&I Give presented the perfect opportunity to do the artist’s work justice while still trying to raise funds to actually exhibit it.
“(Using U&I Give for fundraising) had been brought up about a year ago or two years ago as a possible avenue for us. It was just finding what would be the right project,” Rowley said. “The Zimoun exhibit, which is what we’re raising funds for, was the perfect fit in terms of our need, its visual qualities that lend itself to that kind of environment, the nature of the work.”
While U&I Give is over, the Prichard is always open to donations, especially since Zimoun’s exhibit will be an expensive undertaking.
For more information about Zimoun or other upcoming exhibitions at the Prichard, visit the gallery’s website here.
Lex Miller can be reached at [email protected]