Figure 1 View of the front of the Yellowstone Art Museum in Billings, Montana

Boundless Visions:

An Executive Summary of the

Yellowstone Art Museum

Jordan Pehler

February 4, 2017
ARE6933: Community Cultural Heritage Study

February 04, 2017

Boundless Visions: An Executive Summary of the Yellowstone Art Museum

Introduction
 As I make the short walk from my vehicle parked in the parking lot in the rear
of the museum, I follow a winding blue river that weaves its way through the
breezeway and across the front of the building. At each step you will find a painted
fish, each painted with the name of a donor or supporter of the institution. Upon
entering the front doors I am met with a large marble desk and a smiling gentleman
standing behind it, he proceeds to share with me all that the museum has to offer.
To the right, a small gallery of art and beautiful objects, all for sale. Also to the right,
a small gallery, that once served as the entrance to the original county jail, now
filled with artwork from local children,
The Young Artists' Gallery as it is now
named. To the left, he describes
Boundless Visions, galleries on the

Figure 2 Facade of the original Yellowstone Art
Museum and current entryway to the Young Artists'
Gallery in the Yellowstone Art Museum.
main floor of the museum filled with
a selection of works from the
museum's permanent collection, a
collection that contains over 7,300
original works from around the region
(Yellowstone Art Musuem, 2017).

Upstairs, he says, contains two galleries that

rotate exhibitions every 3-6 months, at this
time exhibiting works in the 49th Annual Art
Auction.

Figure 3 View of the front hallway of

the Yellowstone Art Museum.
Mission and History

The Yellowstone Art Museum (YAM),

located in downtown Billings, Montana is a not-
for-profit 501(c)3 organization and the largest
contemporary art museum in the state of
Montana. With the mission to "exhibit, interpret, collect, and preserve art, with an
emphasis on Montana and surrounding regions, for the enrichment, education,
inspiration, and enjoyment of all" (YAM, 2017, para. 1), the YAM aspires to "be an
extraordinary cultural destination for creative exchange" (para 2) as described by
the institution's vision statement.

Founded in 1964, The Yellowstone Art Museum, then Yellowstone Art Center,
opened in the former Yellowstone County Jail. Over the next 30 years the institution
would continue to expand its collection, staff and exhibition, until it outgrew its
current footprint. In 1995, the Museum led an expansion campaign and successfully
raised 6.2 million dollars. In 1998, the newly expanded and extensively renovated
Yellowstone Art Museum opened its doors to the public. In 2010, the YAM opened its
Visible Vault, a building located behind the main museum that houses the museum's
permanent collection in a manner that is visible and accessible to the public. In
addition to added climate controlled art storage space, the Visible Vault also
includes an Artist-in Residence studio, offering artists from across the region the
space to create and share their creative process (YAM, 2017).

Exhibitions

The YAM has a wide and varied exhibition history, displaying everything from
obscure local artists to the private collection of internationally recognized artists
loaned to the museum from billionaire William I. Koch. The current exhibition Art
Auction 49 is a curated selection of works submitted to the museum from all over
the U.S.. The exhibition contains work crossing all imaginable genres , media, and
subject matter, providing visitors the opportunity to see an eclectic and
comprehensive glimpse into contemporary art throughout the region.

Figure 4 View of a portion of the live auction of the Art Auction 49 exhibition.
 The YAM looks forward to the Spring exhibition schedule that includes a solo
exhibition of the work of Juane Quick-to-See-Smith titled In the Steps of my
Ancestors. Quick-to-See-Smith is an internationally recognized Native American
painter and Montana Native. In addition to Quick-to-See-Smith's work, an exhibition
titled Archea by artist Rosane Volchan O'Conor, a Colorado-based installation artist
focusing on reimagining the microscopic organisms that live in the geothermal
features of Yellowstone National Park. An exciting interactive exhibition, Art-in-
Action, is also slated for exhibition this Spring. Art-in-Action is a "community-based
installation [that] allows the viewer to leave their mark, literally on the walls of the
YAM" (para. 1).

Figure 5 View of the Boundless Visions Exhibition.

Education
 The YAM offers a wide variety of classes for people of all ages and abilities
focusing their attention on art appreciation and hands-on creation in various media.
Guided tours are offered to groups of 6 or more people and are often paired with an
art making activity that compliments the exhibitions. Tours are carried out by staff
or one of the museum's 35 dedicated docents. In addition to tours, the museum has
several partnerships with local schools, groups and communities. One of the largest
and most prolific partnership programs the museum has is the partnership with
Crow Agency Public School. Located 60 miles southeast of the museum, Crow
Agency is provided weekly art instruction from the museum's art educator.

Figure 6 View of the Children's Exhibition currently in the Young Artist's Gallery.

Currently, the museum is conducting their partnership with Head Start in

which, throughout the month of February, all 350 3, 4, and 5 year olds going to
Head Start in Billings, Lockwood, and Laurel will visit the museum for a 30 minute
tour and 30 minute art activity. At the conclusion of the Head Start tours, the
artwork created by these students will be displayed in the museum's Young Artists'
Gallery and a reception will be held in their honor.

Challenges

One challenge addressed by Linda Ewert, the museum's long time Education
Director is that "the institution is quickly outgrowing its current footprint, more
space is needed to continue to grow the museum's programs and extend the
educational mission of the institution" (L. Ewert, personal communication, January,
31, 2017). It seems the demand for additional programming and classes is there,
but the physical space limits the number of participants participating. Another
common concern many non-profits face is uncertainty of income and grant support.
Many of the YAM's programs are supported by substantial annual gifts or grants as
Ewert mentioned:

if any of these funders discontinue support, we would be in a difficult

situation. Tough decisions would have to be made. Do you cut or eliminate the
program? Or do you try and supplement the income in another way?
Fortunately ,we haven't had to make that tough decision (L. Ewert, personal
communication, January, 31, 2017).

Figure 7 Visitors viewing the live auction portion of Art auction 49.

The Future

The YAM is in a good position looking towards the future, though the physical
building is reaching capacity, several staff members mentioned the concept of
digitizing elements of the museum's collection and educational programs in order to
reach a broader audience. Berenice Munson, the Museum's Education Program
Coordinator mentioned in a conversation that, " if we can take the successful
element of the education programs we already have and put them together in an
online format, we could reach anyone, anywhere in the world"(B. Munson, personal
communication, January 31, 2017). No longer limited by the limitation of the brick
and mortar building, the concept of distance learning through the art museum is a
promising one. Munson mentioned "I'm not sure exactly how it would look, or how it
would function, but I think this is the direction the museum should more towards"(B.
Munson, personal communication, January,31, 2017).

Figure 8 A view of a portion of the silent auction in the Art Auction 49 exhibition.

References

Yellowstone Art Museum. (2017). About. Retrieved from

http://www.artmuseum.org/about/