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Louisville Artist Donates $1 Million To Louisville Visual Art For New Curatorial Program

Thanks to a $1 million dollar donation, Louisville Visual Art will be launching a new program to increase access to fine visual art in public spaces. 

The new funds, donated by artist Clare Hirn, will help to launch the Curatorial and Art Purchasing program. This new program will aim to increase interactions between the public and art but also the ability of artists and curators to access funds for their work. 

“During the 2020 shutdown, LVA’s new director, Kristian Anderson, invited me to a zoom meeting where he made it clear that LVA intended to become more supportive of and responsive to artists pursuing professional careers in Louisville,” said Hirn in a press release. “In nursing the dream for this project, I had been daunted by the prospect of starting a new non-profit to make it a reality. The partnership with LVA that grew from my conversations with Kristian is the perfect way to bring my dream to life.”

Hirn has been working as an artist for over 35 years. 

With the funds, LVA will work to build diversity on the committees and within the artists and curators with whom they interact. Each year of the new program, LVA will expect the chosen curators to work with local nonprofits and other public partners to identify artists and works that would be available and appropriate for purchase and display in publicly accessible spaces. 

The curator applications are not limited to those who are formally trained or self-trained as curators. The organization would also like to have artists, designers, writers or others who are engaged in a creative practice to apply. 

For the program, the goal is to set Louisville apart by:

  • Development of a substantial community art collection, accessible to all citizens of Greater Louisville
  • $900,000 in artwork purchase funds directly supporting local artists and our creative economy
  • Critical real-world experience and professional development for emerging curators

For the artists whose work is selected and purchased, they will be given access to the LVA’s Artist Resources Series which teaches artists the fundamentals of running an art-related business. 

In its 112 year history, LVA has done much to help local artists and the community. This new program is a great new piece of that legacy. 

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Louisville Artist Donates $1 Million To Louisville Visual Art For New Curatorial Program