UA News

The Joseph Gross Gallery is featuring a special exhibition to commemorate its 30th year.

Joseph F. Gross, an avid art collector, had a vision several decades ago to create a gallery space at The University of Arizona that would showcase the work of students and faculty.

The gallery, which carries the name of his father and is affiliated with the UA School of Art, has since grown from a small space in an administrative room to a fully functioning gallery showcasing the art not only of those on campus, but artists from around the nation.

The gallery is now in its 30^th year.

To commemorate its anniversary, the gallery is hosting "Presence: Thirty Years at the Joseph Gross Gallery," which will showcase work from Gross' personal collection, including etchings, lithographs, paintings and prints produced by modern artists.

The event will run May 25 through June 22 with a reception scheduled for the public from 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. on Thursday. The gallery is located at 1031 N. Olive Road and is open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday and both the gallery and the event are free and open to the public.

"Gross is a really important contributor not only to the School of Art and The University of Arizona, but also to the Tucson art community," said Brooke Grucella, the gallery's curator.

Gross, professor emeritus and former head of the UA chemical engineering department, had the gallery named after his father, Joseph Gross Sr., who was an immigrant and also a lover of art.

"The genesis of the gallery was a serendipitous meeting," Gross said. He'd met Howard Conant, the former art department head, leading to the two having regular lunch meetings where they discussed art and other happenings.

"At one of these, Conant remarked that he wanted to create a gallery for the art department and had set aside a large room," Gross said. He opted to create an endowment to support the gallery and to name it the Joseph Gross Gallery.

His vision for the gallery "is quite simple and has never changed in 30 years: When people come into the gallery, I want them to say, ‘I see wonderful things,'" Gross said. The gallery, he said, "provides an outstanding venue for students and faculty in the School of Art and provides the opportunity to exhibit visiting artists. It is a community resource in a city that is known for its outstanding galleries and artists."

Gross credited former gallery directors and UA administrators for the gallery's longevity and success.

"Thanks to the extraordinary and creative efforts of Harold Jones, Julie Sasse and the strong support of the art department heads, Andrew Polk and Dennis Jones, (College of Fine Arts) Dean Maurice Sevigny and the University administration," Gross said, "the gallery has evolved from a room into a beautiful gallery that is the equal of any in the United States."

Grucella said the gallery consistently looks for  interdisciplinary work that "helps bridge the gap between traditional work and nontraditional work" that is both new and exciting.  

"The space is vital to us," Grucella said. "It is one of the educational tools we can utilize that is outside of the traditional education spaces," she said. "It is definitely something that encourages students to look beyond their courses and to have a critical eye in contemporary art."