The International Museum of Art is a museum in

El Paso, Texas El Paso (; "the pass") is a city in and the county seat, seat of El Paso County, Texas, El Paso County in the western corner of the U.S. state of Texas. The 2020 population of the city from the United States Census Bureau, U.S. Census Bureau w ...

housed in a historic residence designed by Henry C. Trost. The home was the W.W. Turney residence built for state legislator, lawyer, and rancher

William Ward Turney William Ward Turney (July 11, 1861 - March 23, 1939) was a lawyer, rancher, state representative, and state senator in Texas. His former home now houses the International Museum of Art in El Paso El Paso (; "the pass") is a city in and the s ...

in 1908. The International Museum of Art shares history with the El Paso Museum of Art, which occupied the Turney building until 1998. After it moved into its new building, the International Museum of Art reopened in 1999.

About

The International Museum of Art takes up around 14,000 square feet. The museum also has a 168-seat

auditorium An auditorium is a room built to enable an audience to hear and watch performances. For movie theatres, the number of auditoria (or auditoriums) is expressed as the number of screens. Auditoria can be found in entertainment venues, community ...

and space for art classes.

History

The El Paso International Museum Association began in 1924 and the group started collecting art at a rapid pace.

Kate Moore Brown Kate Moore Brown (December 17, 1871 - March 28, 1945) was an American musician, clubwoman and traveler who lived in El Paso, Texas. Brown was one of the first graduates of El Paso High School. She was the first person to teach music in the public s ...

was a leader in helping to create the museum, which started with the purchase of several display cases for displaying the Percival Henderson collection. The museum's association planned to open a building in 1929, but were deterred because of the

Great Depression The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...

. The group received a Texas state charter in 1930. The Women's Club of El Paso helped promote the idea of the museum. In 1941, they moved into former home of former State Senator

. The property was owned by the City of

El Paso El Paso (; "the pass") is a city in and the seat of El Paso County in the western corner of the U.S. state of Texas. The 2020 population of the city from the U.S. Census Bureau was 678,815, making it the 23rd-largest city in the U.S., the s ...

and the museum was leasing the W.W. Turney house on 1205 Montana Street. In 1944, the museum's board began to raise money to pay for the taxes owed on the house. The International Museum of Art formally opened its doors on May 2, 1947. The museum was planned to be expanded in the late 1950s at a cost of around $725,000 in funds from a

bond issue In finance, a bond is a type of security under which the issuer (debtor) owes the holder (creditor) a debt, and is obliged – depending on the terms – to repay the principal (i.e. amount borrowed) of the bond at the maturity date as well as i ...

. and The expansion would include two new art wings, an

and a children's section. The renovations took place in 1960 with the architectural firm of Carrol and Daeuble and Associates. The Kress collection, donated by the

Samuel H. Kress Samuel Henry Kress (July 23, 1863 – September 22, 1955) was a businessman, philanthropist, and founder of the S. H. Kress & Co. variety store, five and ten cent store chain. With his fortune, Kress amassed one of the most significant collection ...

Foundation, was installed in the building in May 1961. Around this time, the museum became known as the El Paso Museum of Art. The El Paso Museum of Art moved from the Turney home in 1998. The new location was in

Downtown El Paso Downtown El Paso is the central business district of El Paso, Texas. Historical downtown James Day, an El Paso historian, said that downtown's main business area was originally centered between Second Street and San Francisco Street. At a later ...

and initially, Mayor Carlos Ramirez wanted the Turney building to house offices for museum administration. In 1999, forty-two charter members made up the new El Paso International Museum of Art. The volunteers supporting the museum created an International Association for the Visual Arts and remained in the Turney building. The association began to lease the building from the City of El Paso. They also began an El Paso Artists Hall of Fame, which honored two artists a year.

Collection

The museum has over 450 paintings and 25 sculptures on display. The International Museum of Art obtained a

kachina doll A kachina (; also katchina, katcina, or katsina; Hopi: ''katsina'' , plural ''katsinim'' ) is a spirit being in the religious beliefs of the Pueblo peoples, Native American cultures located in the south-western part of the United States. In th ...

collection donated by Deane Miller in 2000. The collection was valued at $40,000.

References

Website

International Museum of Art website
{{authority control Art museums and galleries in Texas Museums in El Paso, Texas Residential buildings completed in 1908 Museums established in 1924 1924 establishments in Texas