Foundations of Art

In honor of its founder, Raymond D. Nasher '43, the Nasher Foundation of Dallas, Texas, is giving $2.5 million to support the new art museum at Duke. President Keohane announced the gift at a groundbreaking ceremony for the museum.

Nasher, an internationally renowned art collector, philanthropist, and real-estate developer, gave Duke $7.5 million in November 1998 toward the cost of the new museum. The museum's designer is architect Rafael Viñoly, perhaps best known for his design of the Tokyo International Forum, who was selected from among a small group of internationally prominent architects in March 2000.

The Nasher family has strong and deep ties to Duke. Nasher was a Duke trustee from 1968 through 1974, when he was elected trustee emeritus. His daughter Nancy Nasher Haemisegger J.D. '79 is currently a Duke trustee and serves on the board of the Nasher Foundation; she is a lifetime member of the law school's board of visitors and a member of the steering committee of the Campaign for Duke, the university's $2-billion fund-raising campaign.

The new museum will consist of five separate pavilions, including three galleries; an auditorium; and a building housing classrooms and offices, all linked by a glass-roofed atrium. It will be located on the northeast corner of Anderson Street and Duke University Road.

Construction on the museum is to begin this spring. The $20-million Nasher Museum of Art is scheduled to be completed in the fall of 2003.