The University of New Mexico (UNM) announced that the University of New Mexico Foundation (UNMF) received a $2.5 million gift from Rosalyn Roembke Hurley. This donation, establishing the Wilson Hurley Collection Endowment, will support the College of University Libraries and Learning Sciences (CULLS) and the Center for Southwest Research and Special Collections (CSWR). The contribution will fund significant projects such as the digitization of Wilson Hurley's works and sponsoring research on his art.
The endowment aims to bring Hurley's art into the digital age and expand scholarly opportunities associated with it. The Wilson Hurley Collection Endowment will fund the acquisition, processing, and digitization of over 40 years of paintings and studies by the late Wilson Hurley (1924-2008), known for his diverse artistic themes. This endowment also includes creating a public website for exploring Hurley's work, sponsoring a UNM graduate fellow for collection-related tasks, and establishing a competitive Visiting Scholars Program, enabling global scholars to study and present their research on Wilson's art, according to a press release by UNM.
Dean Leo Lo expressed his heartfelt thanks for the donation in an official statement. "We express our profound gratitude for the extraordinary contribution from Rosalyn Hurley and the late artist Wilson Hurley," says Dean Leo Lo, College of University Libraries and Learning Sciences, according to a press release by UNM. "With this generous support, we will be able to enhance accessibility to Wilson Hurley’s artistic legacy for generations to come. We are dedicated to managing this invaluable gift to advance the growth of CSWR and the college."
In addition to Dean Lo's sentiments, President Garnett S. Stokes also expressed his gratitude and honor over the trust vested by Rosalyn Hurley in UNM. "We are honored that Rosalyn Hurley has entrusted UNM’s College of University Libraries and Learning Sciences with the legacy of her late husband, Wilson Hurley, whose life and work spans four decades of remarkable landscapes, seascapes, portraits, and still life paintings," says UNM President Dr. Garnett S. Stokes, according to a press release by UNM. "It is our privilege to put her donation to good use as we acquire, care for, and curate Hurley’s art. The entire Lobo community is grateful for Rosalyn Hurley’s generosity and even prouder to provide a good home for Wilson Hurley’s work."
