School of the Museum of Fine Arts at Tufts University to hold virtual annual art sale Nov. 9-23

BOSTON and MEDFORD/SOMERVILLE, Mass. (Oct. 22, 2020)—The School of the Museum of Fine Arts at Tufts University (SMFA at Tufts) will host its 38th annual art sale from November 9 – 23, 2020. The sale is moving online for the first time to keep artists and patrons connected but still safe during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Art lovers worldwide will be able to browse nearly 600 works by more than 300 students, alumni and faculty from across the globe. The curated works available for sale were selected by a jury of esteemed artists, curators and gallerists. 

"Cha Cha," Gonzalo Fuenmayor (Image courtesy of the artist)

Previously, the sale was limited to local members of the SMFA at Tufts community. Now, SMFA artists from across the globe are able to offer their works to art collectors everywhere.

The sale provides crucial visibility to emerging and established artists who may have limited visibility because of the global pandemic closing countless museums and galleries. The annual sale is also SMFA at Tufts' biggest fundraiser, with the proceeds of each sale supporting the contributing artist and a dedicated scholarship for students from underrepresented groups."

This year’s sale also prioritizes work from Black, indigenous, LGBTQIA+ and feminist communities, providing artists often overlooked by mainstream contemporary art communities with an opportunity to have their work seen widely. 

Among the artists involved in this year's sale are Marlon Forrestor, Anthony Peyton Young, Helina Metaferia, Jamal Thorne, Cobi Moules, Gonzalo Fuenmayor and Mima McMillan.

Jurors for the SMFA art sale include Akili Tommasino, associate curator of modern and contemporary art at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston; Nina Johnson, SMFA alumna and director of Nina Johnson Gallery in Miami; and Shinique Smith, SMFA alumna and artist.

Additionally, between six and nine complete pieces from the SMFA at Tufts’ “Exquisite Corpse” project will be available for purchase as part of the sale. A project inspired by the link between the current pandemic and the influenza pandemic in 1918, “Exquisite Corpse” uses a drawing technique developed by the surrealists in which multiple artists co-create art by drawing on a single piece of paper together. 

The special project was developed by Jen Mergel, contemporary artist and SMFA at Tufts board member. Mergel saw this exercise as an opportunity to create meaningful connections between creative minds during a time of social distance.

Participating “Exquisite Corpse” artists include SMFA at Tufts faculty members Ethan Murrow, Ria Brodell and David Antonio Cruz, and alumni Sheila Pepe, Jed Caesar and Nicole Cherubini..

The 2020 art sale is sponsored by Judi and Tim Ritchie, Jessie and Sam Rubenstein, Carol and Richard Daynard, Around the Corner Framing, Art New England, Boston Art Review, BostonGuide.com, Cube, Fortress, Stanhope Framers and U.S. Art.