EAST LANSING, Mich. -- The Friends of Kresge at Michigan State University announced at their annual Twilight in the Garden event that the "Make it a Million" campaign to raise $1 million for the new Eli and Edythe Broad Art Museum has reached its goal.
Since the discussions of a new art museum began in 2000, the Friends of Kresge have raised money through fundraisers, events, sponsorships, memberships, donations and the Twilight event. The 2009 Twilight in the Garden, on Sept. 20, put the Friends of Kresge just past their goal.
“Our Make it a Million campaign really allowed the whole community to come together to support the university and support the arts in the Lansing area,” said Scott Sowulewski, co-president of the Friends of Kresge.
In June 2007, philanthropist and MSU alumnus Eli Broad and his wife, Edythe, donated $18.5 million toward the construction of a new art museum at MSU that will bear their names. They also gave an additional $7.5 million to commission a signature sculpture, and to provide funding for acquisitions, operations and endowment for a total gift of $26 million, the largest single gift ever to the university.
World-renowned architect Zaha Hadid of London was selected as the winner of an international design competition for the Broad Art Museum in January 2008. Teams from Hadid’s firm are currently working with the university representatives as well as local architectural and construction firms to complete the design and building plans. The new museum is expected to open in 2012.
“These donations are evidence of the community’s embrace of the museum,” said Susan J. Bandes, director of the Kresge Art Museum. “The support from our donors shows that they understand the importance of enhancing mid-Michigan’s cultural profile. Signature buildings like the Broad Museum can contribute significantly to economic and cultural tourism.”
The Friends of Kresge began in 1976 as a membership and support group for the university’s art museum. Current membership totals about 350.
For more about the Friends of Kresge, visit http://www.artmuseum.msu.edu/friends/.
For more about the Eli and Edythe Broad Art Museum project, visit http://special.news.msu.edu/broadmuseum/index.php.
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