RICHMOND, Va. -- The Virginia Museum of Fine Arts announced Tuesday that it has received a gift worth nearly $60 million, including a significant contribution to the museum’s expansion campaign and 15 paintings by prominent American artists.
The gift from longtime patrons James W. McGlothlin and Frances Gibson McGlothlin is the largest private gift in the museum’s expansion campaign, which will culminate in a second major wing at the museum named after the couple.
The McGlothlins’ donation includes paintings by Milton Avery, Norman Rockwell and Andrew Wyeth. Last June, the museum announced that it had begun a $190 million expansion and renovation project, anticipated to be completed in 2026.
Alex Nyerges, the director and CEO of the VMFA, shared the following statement about the gift:
This latest generous gift from the McGlothlins expands not only our physical space but also our storytelling through a breadth of works that offer a more nuanced and complete survey of American art, while ensuring that such works are accessible to all. VMFA is deeply grateful to the McGlothlins for this profoundly generous gift and their noble dedication to sharing art with fellow Virginians.
The Virginia Museum of Fine Arts is thrilled to announce today that longtime patrons James W. and Frances Gibson McGlothlin have gifted a total collective value of nearly $60 million toward our current expansion campaign. This transformative contribution, which includes a donation of 15 remarkable paintings by prominent American artists, will culminate in the creation of a 170,000-square-foot addition named the James W. and Frances G. McGlothlin Wing II.
Through this historic act of generosity, the McGlothlins will make a significant impact on the museum, as they did previously. In 2010, their $30 million donation birthed the museum’s 165,000-square-foot addition—the first major wing named in their honor—and included 75 stunning works of American art.
