The Iowa Independent
October 18, 2008

While several members of the University of Iowa community remain dislocated because of this summer’s record flooding, the fate of Jackson POLLOCK’s famous 1943 painting, "Mural," still hangs in limbo. The painting, which had been residing in the University of Iowa Museum of Art building since it opened its doors in 1969, was given to the UI by Peggy GUGGENHEIM in 1951.

The UIMA was one of this summer’s casualties when the Iowa River reached record level and flooded the buildings along the river in June, causing an estimated $232 million in damage. At an Iowa Board of Regents meeting in August, Regent Michael GARTNER floated the possibility of selling POLLOCK’s "Mural" to help pay for the damages left in the flood's wake. GARTNER insisted that he was not advocating for the sale of the painting; rather, he wanted to know what the painting was currently worth and what it would cost to insure it.

These questions prompted Executive Director Robert DONLEY to send a letter to UI officials Aug. 25, requesting the UI to conduct a study of the questions raised by GARTNER — in addition to 16 other specific issues related to the painting.

UI officials submitted its report Oct. 3 to the regents, who in turn posted the findings on their Web site.

In response to GARTNER's first question, the insurance value of the painting at the time of the flood was estimated at $140 million by the New York art auction house Sotheby's. In 2007 Sotheby’s set a value of $100 million for the painting and proposed assisting the UI in selling "Mural" for no less than $150 million. The prospect received serious consideration by UI administrators, but ultimately the advisory board recommended strongly against selling the painting.

The answer to GARTNER's second question regarding the cost to insure the painting could not be directly answered, because the UIMA's collection is not separately scheduled for insurance purposes. The entire collection, however, is currently insured for $500 million at a current annual cost of $181,476.80. The POLLOCK painting's $140 million insurance value is equivalent to 28 percent of the $500 million total insurance coverage. The UI study found that it is not possible to estimate precisely what the savings on insurance premiums would be if the POLLOCK were removed from the collection.

Monetary issues aside, the sale of "Mural" would put the UIMA's accreditation in serious jeopardy and most probably would cause it to be revoked if the painting’s proceeds were used for anything other than the acquisition of additional art work, UI officials said in the report:

"Loss of accreditation would compromise our ability to borrow art from other museums for display at UI, would reduce UIMA's ability to acquire grants to fund exhibitions and programs, and would reduce the likelihood that UIMA would receive donations of additional artwork in the future."

Moreover, sale of the painting, depending on whom the UI sold it to, may go against the original intent of its donor. Although GUGGENHEIM did not articulate specific conditions of her gift to the UI, she did clearly express her intent in a series of letters after her donation. Upon hearing initial rumors of a sale in the 1960s, GUGGENHEIM, an art collector for whom POLLOCK painted "Mural" for in 1943, the following letter to UI President Virgil HANCHER:

With regard to artistic and historic import, "Mural" is regarded as a turning point in POLLOCK’s career and a turning point in American art. When it was first displayed at the New York Museum of Modern Art during a 1998-99 retrospective of POLLOCK's work, art critic Robert HUGHES wrote in the Times that "Mural" was "the picture in which [POLLOCK] broke free . . . and, it now seems, took American art into a larger freedom with him."

Moreover, POLLOCK is viewed as one of the most influential American painters of the 20th century and his name is synonymous with the Abstract Expressionist movement that took root in 1950s America.

"Its cultural value to the nation is such that it would be welcome in any major museum in the country. Its presence here has long provided a unique mark of distinction to the University of Iowa art program and to the UI Art Museum, and has been a symbol of the UI art program's prominence and historic significance," UI officials noted in the report. "There are other connections with Iowa as well. Both of POLLOCK's parents were originally from Tingley, Iowa, and there are anecdotal accounts of POLLOCK coming to the Iowa City area to visit famed painter Grant WOOD."

Upon receiving the report from the UI, Regents President David MILES issued the following statement Oct. 3: "The Board thanks the University for its timely and thoughtful response. This concludes the Board's inquiry into this matter."

Although MILES' statement appears to indicate the Board of Regents will not proceed with the sale of the painting at this particular time, the fate of "Mural," along with the future of UIMA, remains unclear — at least until a new home is resurrected to house one of POLLOCK's most famous creations and contributions to the art world.

Mural, by Jackson POLLACK, 1943

Transcription by Sharon R. Becker, May of 2009

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