Art Foundation Enters New Year with Historic Donations to U.S. Embassies Abroad
FAPE, the leading non-profit organization dedicated to enhancing the United States image abroad through American art, ended 2010 with another record year of art donations to U.S. embassies and consulates abroad.
- (1888PressRelease) January 20, 2011 - Washington D.C. - The Foundation for Art and Preservation in Embassies (FAPE), the leading non-profit organization dedicated to enhancing the United States image abroad through American art, ended 2010 with another record year of art donations to U.S. embassies and consulates abroad. Throughout 2010, FAPE donated 80 works of celebrated American art to 12 countries.
The art donations are part of FAPE's larger mission to educate global diplomatic communities on the rich cultural heritage of the U.S., and to offer the host country a chance to experience hallmarks of American art. The works are chosen from FAPE's Lee Kimche McGrath Original Print Collection, which receives annual print contributions from notable American artists for display in U.S. embassies. Named for FAPE's Founding Director, the Original Print Collection is FAPE's oldest program, established in 1989, when Frank Stella contributed The Symphony in an edition large enough for a print to be sent to every U.S. embassy in the world.
In 2010, FAPE donated prints from the following artists: John Baldessari, Vija Celmins, Chuck Close, the Gee's Bend Quilters Collective, Jasper Johns, Alex Katz, Ellsworth Kelly, Roy Lichtenstein, Robert Mangold, Elizabeth Murray, Robert Rauschenberg, James Rosenquist, Susan Rothenberg, Ed Ruscha and Frank Stella.
The 2010 prints were donated to U.S. embassies and consulates in: Argentina, Australia, Austria, Brunei, Costa Rica, Gabon, Greece, India, Japan, Mexico and the Philippines. Art work was also donated to the new U.S. Mission to the United Nations in New York City.
The United States Embassy in Libreville, Gabon received 4 prints from artists Louisiana Bendolph, Mary Lee Bendolph, Loretta Bennett and Loretta Pettway of the Gee's Bend Quilters Collective. The women all have a distinctive, bold, and sophisticated quilting style based on skills and an aesthetic that have been passed down since antebellum times. Yet, their quilts each possess a geometric simplicity reminiscent of Amish quilts and modern art. Their work has now found a home in the West Central African country of Gabon.
Eric D. Benjaminson, Ambassador to the Gabonese Republic and the Democratic Republic of Sao Tome and Principe said, "FAPE understands the warmth and excitement that having great works of art on our walls can generate. We are better able to represent the U.S. when our facilities are graced by pieces of art that help us break the ice with guests and explain different facets of our heritage. We're sure that our visitors leave with a better impression of the breadth of American culture when they've enjoyed seeing and discussing the beautiful pieces that FAPE is able to provide."
For more information please see http://www.fapeglobal.org
About the Foundation for Art and Preservation in Embassies
The Foundation for Art and Preservation in Embassies (FAPE) is the leading non-profit organization dedicated to enhancing the United States image abroad through American art. Founded as a public-private, non-partisan partnership in 1986, FAPE works with the U.S. Department of State to contribute fine art to U.S. embassies around the world. FAPE's donations include works by more than 208 preeminent American artists placed in more than 140 countries. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., FAPE has raised more than $56 million in art and monetary contributions to date. For more information, please visit www.fapeglobal.org.
Media Contact
Radha Vij
For FAPE
Gutenberg Communications
+1-212-239-8741
Radha ( @ ) gutenbergpr dot com
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