Wake Forest launches a new digital guide to art collections, exhibitions

Wake Forest University collections and gallery exhibitions are now available in a new digital guide on Bloomberg Connects, a free arts and culture app created by Bloomberg Philanthropies. 

The Bloomberg Connects app makes the University’s art accessible for both on-site and off-site visits through photo, audio and video features.

The Wake Forest digital guide offers access to the Mark H. Reece Collection of Student-Acquired Contemporary Art. Highlights include works by Picasso, Jasper Johns, Alex Katz and Louise Nevelson, as well as more recent works by Shirin Neshat, Salman Toor and Martine Gutierrez. The Collection is built entirely by students, who since 1963 have traveled every four years (with the exception of the pandemic year) to New York City, to purchase art for the collection that reflects the times.

“We are thrilled to make our collections available to a wider audience. Wake Forest joins a growing roster of national and international museums and cultural spaces on Bloomberg Connects, and we are one of only a few academic institutions on the app,” said Jennifer Finkel, Acquavella Curator of Collections. “This guide allows us to increase the visibility of art on our campus, and it is a resource for faculty, students, staff and visitors. We can also share how art is being used across the curriculum from engineering to dance.”

During the 2023-24 academic year, Wake Forest will be celebrating the 60th anniversary of the Reece Collection and the University’s one-of-a-kind student art-buying experience.

In addition to the University’s permanent collection of contemporary art, the app showcases the University’s recent donations and new acquisitions and provides a self-guided tour of Wake Forest’s public art collection. Current student-curated exhibitions are also available. A section on integrating art into curricular and co-curricular activities to enhance teaching and learning is also included on the site.

The free Bloomberg Connects app is available for download from Google Play or the App Store. Guides within can be used off-site or on-site as a hands-free audio or visual guide.

About Bloomberg connects

Bloomberg Philanthropies launched the Bloomberg Connects app in October 2019. A free digital guide to cultural organizations around the world, Bloomberg Connects makes it easy to access and engage with arts and culture from mobile devices, anytime, anywhere.