A new exhibition of works by Pablo Picasso opened this month at the Fred Jones Jr Museum of Art (at the University of Oklahoma). This unique exhibition is a combination of work on loan from the St. Louis Art Museum and eight Picasso works from the FJJMA’s permanent collection including Woman in the Studio (a 1956 painting); on view until December 29, 2013.
One hundred years ago, there were no art museums (or collections) in the state of Oklahoma available to the public, and the art center nearest Norman, OK (where the campus is located) was as far afield as St. Louis. Today the Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art (named after the benefactor’s son who had died in an airplane crash during his senior year at the University of Oklahoma) oversees 40,000 square feet of exhibition space and more than 16,000 objects in its permanent collection. The history behind this little museum that could gets more interesting. In 2012, the OU Athletics Department announced a $60k gift which provides free admission for all museum visitors in perpetuity.