FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Media Contact: Kirsten Schmidt
(949) 759-1122 ext 207
kschmidt@ocma.net
ORANGE COUNTY MUSEUM OF ART
LAUNCHES NEW WEBSITE
Newport Beach, CA—The Orange County Museum of Art (OCMA) today launched a newly
designed and expanded website that better presents the programs and collection in a more
engaging, informative, and user-friendly format. After years of studies, collection research, and
current website standards, www.ocma.net now offers a clean design that enhances artworks,
greater visibility into the museum's art collection, expanded artist documentation, and increased
information supporting museum exhibitions and public programs.
"This institution has a long history of critically acclaimed
exhibitions and innovative education programs, and yet did not
have an online presence that supported those accomplishments
or met today's standards," stated OCMA President Craig W.
Wells. "It is critical to the institution's future that we better present
the focus of the museum's collection and programs and to do so
within a site that enhances the visitors' experience."
After years of research, the museum leadership determined several areas that were most
critical in achieving a successful website. Those goals led to the following new features:
•
A clean, simple, and contemporary design that best presents twentieth and twenty-first
century art, making the works themselves stand out as important elements of the site.
•
Greater learning capabilities for visitors exploring the museum's collection integrating
approximately 700 images of works from OCMA's collection, bios on more than 150
artists who are represented in the collection, and, when available, audio and video
content as well—providing unprecedented access into the museum's vault for
researchers and casual visitors alike. This portion of the site is an ongoing project, and
the museum audience should re-visit regularly for additional content.
•
An improved online visitor experience with a powerful user interface along with easy and
intuitive navigation, as well as better search capabilities throughout the site—putting the
user needs at the forefront.
•
The ability to support current exhibitions with additional content—of which visitors might
not have been aware—as extensive links connect related artworks, scholarship,
museum programs, and publications, inspiring greater online learning and visits to the
museum.
•
A glimpse into the minds of the individuals who make-up the museum community,
including a blog with remarks by museum curators about works in the collection, and a
"Pick-of-the-Month" that highlights one artwork with commentary by museum staff,
docents, members, and others.
•
An expanded online Museum Store with a greatly enhanced checkout process.
The re-designed and expanded website was made possible, in part, by a generous grant from
the United States Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) to implement much needed
upgrades to OCMA's online resources. The project was aimed to bring in the latest technology
and to respond to audience needs through greater scholarship and easier navigation for online
visitors.
Updated Visual Brand
Along with the redesigned website, the museum has refreshed OCMA's visual identity that more
accurately reflects the museum's programming and collecting focus of modern and
contemporary art. The bold and clean lines of the new logo
also allow additional sub-brands, highlighting long-standing
programs that have proven popular with the public and will
continue into the future.
Institution Overview
Thirteen visionary women opened the museum in 1962 as the Balboa Pavilion Gallery. With a
focus on modern and contemporary art, their efforts were well received and the museum
enjoyed recognition from coast to coast. By 1968, the institution became known as the Newport
Harbor Art Museum and in 1972, moved to a nearby, larger location. Interest and support
continued to grow, as did its collections and exhibitions, and in 1977, the museum opened its
doors in the current location on San Clemente Drive. In 1997, the museum was remodeled and
renamed the Orange County Museum of Art and to this day, enjoys worldwide recognition for its
award-winning education programs and ground-breaking exhibitions, many of which travel
nationally and internationally.
Exhibition History
The museum is especially noted for organizing important exhibitions of contemporary art that
are locally relevant and internationally significant, including the first surveys of Vija Celmins
(1980), Chris Burden (1988), and Tony Cragg (1990), as well as early exhibitions of seminal
work by Lari Pittman (1983), Charles Ray (1990), Bill Viola (1997), Iñigo Manglano-Ovalle
(2003), and Catherine Opie (2006). Thematic exhibitions of contemporary art have ranged from
Girls' Night Out (2003), presenting work by ten female photographers of diverse nationalities;
and State of Mind: New California Art circa 1970, presenting an in-depth study of California
artists in the 1960 and 1970s who re-defined contemporary art.
In addition to its significant contributions to the field of contemporary art, the museum has also
organized and hosted important exhibitions of modern art and design such as Edvard Munch:
Expressionist Paintings, 1900–1940 (1983), American Modern, 1925–1940: Picasso to Pollock:
Modern Masterpieces from the Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art (2004), and Birth of the
Cool: Art, Design, and Culture at Midcentury (2007).
In 1984, the museum launched the California Biennial, one of the most important regional
surveys in the world devoted to new art. In 2013, that program evolved into the California-Pacific
Triennial, the first on-going exhibition in the Western Hemisphere devoted to contemporary art
from around the Pacific Rim. Since 2004, the museum's exhibitions have traveled to more than
30 museums throughout the United States and Europe and include Kutlug Ataman: Paradise
(2007); Mary Heilmann: To Be Someone (2007); Richard Diebenkorn: The Ocean Park Series
(2012); Jack Goldstein x 10,000 (2012); and Richard Jackson: Ain't Painting a Pain (2013).
Collection History
The Orange County Museum of Art's collection forms the cornerstone of the museum and is a
significant cultural resource for the community. Comprised of more than 3,000 works of art, the
collection's focus is on modern and contemporary art and includes painting, sculpture,
photography, drawing, printmaking, video, digital, and installation art produced during the
twentieth and twenty-first centuries.
The museum's major holdings are California-based, highlighting such movements as early and
mid-century modernism, Bay Area Figuration, assemblage, California Light and Space, Pop Art,
Minimalism, and installation art. Prominently featured are works by John Baldessari, Elmer
Bischoff, Chris Burden, Vija Celmins, Bruce Conner, Richard Diebenkorn, Robert Irwin, Helen
Lundeberg, Stanton Macdonald-Wright, John McCracken, John McLaughlin, Catherine Opie,
Alan Rath, Charles Ray, Ed Ruscha, and Bill Viola. The museum's international holdings are a
growing area of the collection and include work by Eija-Liisa Ahtila, Lee Bul, Glenn Ligon,
Christian Marclay, Iñigo Manglano-Ovalle, Daniela Rossell, and Lorna Simpson.
Programs
OCMA's School Tours program serves approximately 6,500 Orange County youth each year.
Grades two through twelve are served with a concentration of forth graders. Of the 27 school
districts that partner in this free program, nearly 60% of the students come from Title 1 schools.
In addition to the free tours and accompanying interactive studio component, OCMA is the only
institution in the county to provide financial support to transportation expenses to schools that
otherwise could not visit the museum. The museum's Third Thursdays evenings series
provides adult audiences with unique and exciting access to exhibition-based artist talks.
Additionally, the museum partners with the Newport Beach Film Festival to present monthly
screenings and independent films under the moniker Cinema Orange. Artists of all ages may
take part in Studio Sundays, in which artists and educators work with participants to create an
contemporary art inspired by exhibitions or the museum's collection. One of the most popular
programs for the community is Free Second Sundays, at which time, the public is invited for
free to visit the galleries, participate in hands-on art projects, attend live performances, and take
family-geared gallery tours.
MUSEUM INFORMATION
Orange County Museum of Art is located at 850 San Clemente Drive in Newport Beach, California. Hours are 11
am to 5 pm, Wednesday through Sunday, with extended hours Thursdays from 11 am to 8 pm. Admission is $12
adults; $10 seniors and students; children twelve and under and OCMA members are free. There is no charge for
parking. All facilities are handicapped accessible. For more information, call 949.759.1122 or visit www.ocma.net.