by Brianna Crandall — November 16, 2015—Government facilities managers who have wondered about the origin or significance of the art on their walls or sculptures around their property, or wanted to share their significance with tenants or visitors, will be interested in a new online gallery of public art.
Alexander Calder’s “Flamingo” sits outside the Kluczynski Federal Building in Chicago.
The U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) is the owner of one of the nation’s oldest and largest public art collections, with more than 26,000 paintings, sculptures, video installations and more. For the first time, people looking for information on these pieces will be able to find it online instead of thumbing through a printed book.
The Fine Arts Collection is an interactive Web site that allows researchers, historians, students, and art lovers to quickly find works by their favorite artists, or discover what works are in their state or hometown.
“No one has seen all of these works in person, but now we have the opportunity to understand the breadth of the collection. This site brings it all together for the first time and provides a portrait of America as seen by its artists,” said Jennifer Gibson, director of GSA’s Art in Architecture and Fine Arts programs.
“Girl Sewing,” woodcut print by Bernard P. Schardt, is located at the University of Michigan Museum of Art.
Since its founding in 1949, GSA has been commissioning and preserving great works of art by American artists. Signature pieces like Alexander Calder’s “Flamingo” sits outside the Kluczynski Federal Building in Chicago, and GSA headquarters features “Kites” by Jacob Hashimoto. Paintings and murals created during the Great Depression as part of the Works Progress Administration (WPA) hang on the walls of post offices, courthouses and federal buildings all across the country.
GSA’s Fine Arts Collection infographic is available on the GSA Web site. For questions about building access, visit GSA’s Visiting Public Buildings Web page.
