Art museum named in honor of the Harnetts

The University has named its art museum in honor of Joel and Lila Harnett, longtime supporters of the visual arts at Richmond. The Joel and Lila Harnett Museum of Art incorporates Marsh Gallery, Booth Lobby Gallery, Newby Gallery and Pickels Gallery.

It is one of three museums on campus known collectively as University Museums. The others are the Lora Robins Gallery of Design from Nature and the Joel and Lila Harnett Print Study Center.

An event at the museum to honor the Harnetts and officially dedicate the Harnett Museum of Art is scheduled for April 30.

For many years, the Harnetts have supported the visual arts generously, both at the University and in Phoenix, where they have lived since 1987. The couple recently made another major gift that will endow the Harnett Museum of Art and support its future exhibitions and programs.

Joel Harnett, R’45, is a former vice president of Look magazine and founder of Media Horizons, a public radio broadcasting and magazine company. With Lila, he created Phoenix Home & Garden, Arizona’s leading magazine. He serves on the board and executive committee of the Heard Museum in Phoenix.

Lila Harnett is the founder of ArtTable, a national organization of professional women leaders in the visual arts. She was an art critic for Cue magazine and for eight years a member of the New York State Council on the Arts. She is a trustee and member of the executive committee of the Phoenix Art Museum.

“We are indebted to Joel and Lila Harnett for their vision and their generosity,” said Richard Waller, executive director of University Museums. “The gifts from the Harnetts will enable us to transform our art museum into the centerpiece of our museums on campus. With their support and guidance, the Harnett Museum of Art will not only flourish but will take its place as a leading university art museum both regionally and nationally.

The museum currently uses its 4,000 square feet of public galleries to feature approximately 15 rotating exhibitions each year.

The Harnetts have supported many of the museum’s exhibitions during the past 20 years, including works by notable American artists such as George Tooker, Philip Pearlstein, Jerome Witkin and Janet Fish. The Harnetts also have given significant artwork to the museum’s permanent collection, and they continue to fund the Harnett Summer Fellow, which allows a Richmond undergraduate to work full time with museum staff to research the collections and curate exhibitions.

In 2001, the Harnetts made a major contribution to establish the Joel and Lila Harnett Print Study Center, the only facility of its kind in the region, and to give the museum an endowment for print acquisitions and programs.

RICHMOND MATTERS