UCLA Artists in the Hammer Museum Collections, 1919–Today
Cynthia Burlingham, director, Grunwald Center for the Graphic Arts
Today, the UCLA Department of Art is one of the most respected in the field, with a stellar faculty roster and a distinguished track record among its many graduates. Its pre-eminence is, at least in part, the product of over 100 years of history. Since its beginnings in 1919, the Department of Art has remained as a model of pedagogy and practice for art departments and schools around the country.
The collections of the Hammer Museum bear witness to this remarkable history. Thanks to numerous acquisitions and bequests, including several major gifts by former faculty including Dorothy Brown, Robert Heinecken, and Jim Welling, the museum’s collections evolved in parallel with the Department of Art. The works in the Hammer Contemporary Collection and the UCLA Grunwald Center Collection now offer a privileged glimpse into the Department of Art’s most influential legacies.