The National Art Museum of Sport (NAMOS) was a fine art museum that focused on a sport theme. Sport art captures emotion: the anxiety of competition, the joy of winning, the agony of defeat. It depicts internal conflict: the pitting of honor and sportsmanship versus the desire to win, or the struggle to maintain resolve in the face of overwhelming odds, pain and fatigue. Whether one thinks of the athletic contests portrayed in Greek vase painting and sculpture, the epic hunts that form the subjects of so many great medieval tapestries and manuscript pages, or the elegant horse-racing scenes of Fay Moore and Marilyn Newmark, depicting sport has inspired artists particularly those who want to capture the motion and emotion of sport. In America, a country celebrated for hard work and hard play, sport art has had an especially vigorous history. Many of the most renowned artists-

Thomas Eakins Thomas Cowperthwait Eakins (; July 25, 1844 – June 25, 1916) was an American realist painter, photographer, sculptor, and fine arts educator. He is widely acknowledged to be one of the most important American artists. For the length ...

Winslow Homer Winslow Homer (February 24, 1836 – September 29, 1910) was an American landscape painter and illustrator, best known for his marine subjects. He is considered one of the foremost painters in 19th-century America and a preeminent figure in ...

, and

George Bellows George Wesley Bellows (August 12 or August 19, 1882 – January 8, 1925) was an American realism, American realist painting, painter, known for his bold depictions of urban life in New York City. He became, according to the Columbus Museum of Art ...

-were active sports persons themselves and numbered among their friends leading athletes, fishermen and hunters. For them, as for many others, the multifaceted drama of sport was both a challenge and inspiration, the generating force that led to unforgettable works. The National Art Museum of Sport had one of the largest collections and exhibition schedules of fine art depicting sport. The museum had more than 1,000 pieces showcasing the heroes and heroines of basketball, boxing, baseball, golf and tennis-over 50 sports. In addition to its collections, the museum also featured extensive archives and a library about sport art and its collection. The National Art Museum of Sport had a two pronged mission: to encourage sport artists in their efforts to create sport art, and to collect, preserve, and share through exhibits the best fine art depicting sport that it can acquire. It did this through exhibits, educational materials and outreach programs. In carrying out this mission, NAMOS was a bridge of understanding between two worlds, introducing art to the world of sports and sport to the world of art. In 2017 the museum collection was acquired by the

Children's Museum of Indianapolis The Children's Museum of Indianapolis is the world's largest children's museum. It is located at 3000 North Meridian Street, Indianapolis, Indiana in the United Northwest Area neighborhood of the city. The museum is accredited by the American Al ...

and the museum disbanded. The collection is currently on display at the Children's Museum.

History

Founded in 1959 by Germain G. Glidden, an artist and sportsman, the National Art Museum of Sport opened its first location in 1968 at

Madison Square Garden Madison Square Garden, colloquially known as The Garden or by its initials MSG, is a multi-purpose indoor arena in New York City. It is located in Midtown Manhattan between Seventh and Eighth avenues from 31st to 33rd Street, above Pennsylva ...

. The museum then moved to the University of New Haven in 1979. After exhibiting at the

1987 Pan American Games The 1987 Pan American Games, officially known as the X Pan American Games, was a major international multi-sport event held in Indianapolis, Indiana, United States, on August 7–23, 1987. Over 4,300 athletes from 38 countries in the Americas c ...

Indianapolis Indianapolis (), colloquially known as Indy, is the state capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the seat of Marion County. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the consolidated population of Indianapolis and Marion ...

, the National Art Museum of Sport subsequently received a grant from

Lilly Endowment Lilly Endowment Inc., headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana, is one of the world's largest private philanthropic foundations and among the largest endowments in the United States. It was founded in 1937 by Josiah K. (J. K.) Lilly Sr. and his so ...

to relocate to Indianapolis and establish a gallery in the then-new Bank One Tower (now

Salesforce Tower Salesforce Tower, formerly known as Transbay Tower, is a 61-story skyscraper at 415 Mission Street, between First and Fremont Street, in the South of Market district of downtown San Francisco. Its main tenant is Salesforce, a cloud-based softwar ...

), where the museum opened in 1990; It subsequently settled at

Indiana University – Purdue University Indianapolis Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th st ...

in 1994. The National Art Museum of Sport left IUPUI in 2012 and is in discussions for a new location. The National Art Museum of Sport hosted over 100 exhibitions around the world including, notably: the

1964 New York World's Fair The 1964–1965 New York World's Fair was a world's fair that held over 140 pavilions and 110 restaurants, representing 80 nations (hosted by 37), 24 US states, and over 45 corporations with the goal and the final result of building exhibits or ...

; multiple Olympiads; Madison Square Garden; the Biennial Exhibit of Sport Art in Madrid; IBM Gallery and the Pan Am Games. Exhibits have featured internationally renowned artists including

Elaine de Kooning Elaine Marie Catherine de Kooning (, née Fried; March 12, 1918 – February 1, 1989) was an Abstract Expressionist and Figurative Expressionist painter in the post-World War II era. She wrote extensively on the art of the period and was an edito ...

, Morris Rosenfeld, and

Andy Warhol Andy Warhol (; born Andrew Warhola Jr.; August 6, 1928 – February 22, 1987) was an American visual artist, film director, and producer who was a leading figure in the visual art movement known as pop art. His works explore the relationsh ...

, as well as contemporary and emerging artists. Exhibitions from the permanent collection in the last years have included: "Inuit Games", "Winslow Homer: Leisurely Observations", "Portrait of an Athlete", "Luc-Albert Moreau: Physiologie de La Boxe", and "Drawn to Sport". The museum’s exhibit during Indianapolis’ 2012 Super Bowl XLVI was "The Football Invitational". In May 2012, the museum opened the "Speed & Motion: Racing to the Finish Line" exhibition that featured one of the largest collections of Mina Papatheodorou-Valyraki's work to be exhibited in the US.

References

{{authority control Sports museums in Indiana

Art museums and galleries in Indiana Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as th ...

University museums in Indiana Museums in Indianapolis Defunct art museums and galleries in the United States International Sports Heritage Association 501(c)(3) organizations Art museums established in 1968 1968 establishments in New York City 2017 disestablishments in Indiana Museums disestablished in 2017 The Children's Museum of Indianapolis