Institutional Statements & Beliefs
We believe that art has the power to move people; to bridge gaps in understanding; to spark our collective imagination toward building a better, more equitable world; and to enrich learning experiences beyond the capacity of traditional classroom structures. In support of these outcomes, the Art Museum acquires, preserves, interprets, exhibits, and makes accessible a diverse collection of art across all GVSU public spaces for the benefit of faculty, students, and community.
We seek to actively collaborate with community partners in the production of learning materials, experiences, and events, as well as the placement of art in public buildings. We support the interdisciplinary educational goals of the University and for the benefit of the community-at-large.
We believe that art matters because our shared humanity experiences and stories matter.
The GVSU Art Museum team is committed to contributing to a diverse, inclusive, and equitable environment by learning, growing, and acting as arts advocates within our GVSU Laker community. We acquire and present work by artists of all backgrounds, identities, and experiences as well as work that examines complex social, cultural, aesthetic, and historical issues. We acknowledge that arts and cultural institutions have a complex history of embedded and structural inequities that create barriers for many artists to participate and viewers to experience the power of art in public spaces.
We support the University’s values outlined in the Reach Higher 2025 strategic plan, specifically the emphasis on Inclusive and Equitable Community. Through our commitments listed below we seek to foster and sustain a sense of belonging, promote diversity and respect, and address systemic issues that impact outcomes for those who have been historically excluded from higher education as well as arts and cultural institutions across the country. Inclusion and equity are experienced through the wide variety of artwork on display on physical campuses and in our digital database and website, as well as our temporary exhibitions, events, and learning resources.
We commit ourselves to:
- Centering diverse artists’ voices and perspectives
- Providing opportunities for faculty, staff, and students to engage with original works of art on campus that build on cultural competencies
- Engaging our community with artists in dynamic dialogue that reflects our social climate through exhibitions and events
- Continuously assessing and reviewing policies, practices, and procedures to identify and remove barriers to our goal of presenting a diverse and inclusive collection of art and exhibitions
The GVSU Art Museum would like to recognize the People of the Three Fires: the Ojibwe, Odawa, and Potawatomi peoples on whose land we are gathered. The Three Fires People are indigenous to this land which means that this is their ancestral territory. Every university is built on stolen, native land. We are guests on their land and one way to practice right relations is to develop genuine ways to acknowledge the histories and traditions of the people who originated here first, who are still here, and who tend to the land always. As we make this land acknowledgment, we know it is but an important first step, and that there are many more that we need to take when we decide to engage in the important work of social justice.
We pledge to:
1) provide indigenous artists with the platform to share their talents, artwork, and stories
2) appropriately collect, exhibit, and care for indigenous-made artwork and objects
3) create an environment where the history and traditions of artists indigenous to this area can be recognized and celebrated
For more information on the purpose and intent of land acknowledgments, see Northwestern University's site.
Freedom of speech is the foundation of our communities and our nation. The works this institution exhibits may awe, illuminate, challenge, unsettle, confound, provoke, and, at times, offend. We defend the freedom to create content and exhibit such work anywhere in the world, and we recognize the privilege of living in a country where creating, exhibiting, and experiencing such work is a constitutional right.
To exhibit a work of art is not to endorse the work or the vision, ideas, and opinions of the artist. It is to uphold the right of all to experience diverse visions and views. If and when controversies arise from the exhibition of a work of art, we welcome public discussion and debate with the belief that such discussion is integral to the experience of the art. Consistent with our fundamental commitment to freedom of speech, however, we will not censor exhibitions in response to political or ideological pressure.