SW New Mexico News

The University Art Museum (UAM) at New Mexico State University has been awarded a $300,000 grant from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation’s "Frontera Cultural Fund." This grant will support the museum's operations over the next three years.

The "Frontera Cultural Fund" is distributing $25 million to arts and community organizations along the U.S.-Mexico border. The initiative was developed in collaboration with artists and cultural leaders across this region, which covers nearly 2,000 miles and includes four U.S. states and six Mexican states.

Elizabeth Alexander, president of the Mellon Foundation, stated: “The U.S.-Mexico borderlands are home to an abundance of cultures and creative traditions, yet remain a region minimally funded by arts philanthropies in the United States.” She emphasized that their support aims to sustain diverse arts and histories in these communities.

Located 50 miles from the international border, NMSU’s Art Museum serves as a cultural hub for art and artists in southern New Mexico. Marisa Sage, director of UAM, highlighted its role: “The UAM is a contemporary art museum in southern New Mexico that plays a critical role in establishing connections across real and perceived borders.”

In 2022, funding from the Mellon Foundation enabled UAM to hire a collections curator, enhancing access to its collections and digitizing over 900 retablos from NMSU’s collection. The current grant supports further development under a strategic plan focused on diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility initiatives.

Sage remarked: “With our three-year strategic plan in place, this new funding from the Mellon Foundation will support significant growth for the UAM with an increased focus on diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility (DEIA) initiatives.”

Among the 32 inaugural grant recipients are organizations based both in Mexico and the United States. These include museums like El Paso Museum of Art and universities such as New Mexico State University for curatorial work.

Sage also noted: “With renewed funding from the Mellon Foundation, the UAM will successfully operate at the intersection of art, research and social practice.”

The NMSU Foundation has selected UAM as a highlighted project for Giving Tuesday this year. For more information on exhibitions and programs at UAM or to visit them at their location on E. University Ave., check their website.