38 So much of art depends on human interaction for its story to thrive. It is, after all, a person who brushes colors across a white canvas, who molds a lump of clay into a sculpture. And for years, the stories of much of OSU’s art collection fell silent as pieces were left in the dark — stored in closets and basements, void of human interaction. Next fall, the art once hidden across campus will regain its voice as it is taken out of storage and moved to its new home in downtown Stillwater. OSU’s Postal Plaza Gallery will breathe new life into the art that has been sleeping in the dark rooms across campus for decades. years of art collected at OSU will evolve into the gallery within the former post office building, which will be equipped with two separate display galleries and a climate-controlled storage space, says Bruce Crauder, associate dean of the College of Arts and Sciences. The construction project will revive what was once the epicenter for Stillwater’s communications as the heart for OSU’s art. For the opening exhibition, the gallery will shine a well-deserved spotlight on the 2,000-plus pieces of the university’s permanent art collection, Siddons says. Once its doors open, the gallery will offer visitors an array of pieces from the 17th century to today. The diverse collection includes pieces from around the globe ranging from African sculptures and Indian textiles to two works by Salvador Dali. Siddons discovered that locating the various pieces proved to be her first challenge. After the 2010 announcement that the former post office would soon store and showcase the university’s art, much of Siddons’ time was dedicated to the search and rescue of various pieces throughout campus. “We spent the first six months just finding everything,” Siddons says. “It’s not that no one knew where they were, but you had to find the right people who knew.” A portion of the collection was displayed within the Bartlett Center for Visual Arts, while other pieces were hung in hallways or entryways throughout campus. “Almost every building you go to on the main campus has artwork stored in it on the walls,” Siddons says. “One of the things you do when you don’t have proper storage is hang it out on the wall somewhere. People are careful about the art on the walls, so it’s cared for.” While some may have seen it as bittersweet to see blank walls where art was once “stored” on campus, others were a little more thrilled to see the artwork find a new home in the gallery downtown, Siddons says. “We have this amazing collection, and it doesn’t just deserve to be shown, but it needs to be taken care of and properly exhibited,” says Louise Siddons, an art history assistant professor and OSU’s curator of collections. “There is a story of rejuvenation here.” With the opening of the Postal Plaza Gallery next fall, OSU’s permanent art collection will finally have a place to call home. What began as a search for proper storage for the more than 70 “It’s so exci t ing because when we open the doors, people wi l l say this is museum qual i ty and that OSU real ly knows what i t’s doing wi th artwork. And they’ l l be correct.” — Louise Siddons
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