This is a companion piece to “Art for Innovation.”

 

The Alfred P. Maurice Art Sale is conducted by Western Oregon University in honor of the late Alfred Maurice, an avid art collector, an artist in his own right, and a friend and benefactor to our campus community. 

 

Since 2011, WOU students have participated in a competitive aspect of the event, aiming to win a $5,000 prize. According to Development Officer Sabra Jewell, the fundraiser organizer, “The Maurice Undergraduate Initiative Prize Competition is more than a competition–it is an expression of ideals and creative problem solving. Since 2011, the Maurice Prize has been given to students tackling issues such as housing and transportation.” To learn how to enter for themselves, students can visit this link. The deadline is December 15, 2020.

 

Maurice’s extensive art collection has been sold for years, as it was given to WOU for the sake of this fundraiser. The profits from these auctions contribute to the prize money that competition winners, at this university and others, receive. 

 

Although there was an art walk in Monmouth on March 11 of this year to celebrate Maurice’s birthday, the ongoing sale now looks quite different due to the pandemic. When asked about how Maurice’s art is continuing to be sold, Jewell replied, “This time it is completely online. […] We are excited to move the sale online so that friends of Fred from around the country can participate. Currently, we have about 15 pieces up from Maurice’s Chicago Series.” Said pieces can be viewed and bought here.

 

Jewell says that although there is a time frame for the competition, the online art sale itself will be ongoing, as they still have much of the collection left to sell.