In a unique public-private partnership, Marshall University artists are bringing cutting-edge artwork to the once conservative walls of a local law firm.
Step inside any law office in America today and you will most likely find a recurring theme — dark wood desks, rich leather chairs, beige walls and portraits of attorneys from a bygone era. Conservative in every way. But when it came time to decorate their offices, the partners at Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough, LLP decided to take a unique approach. The national law firm, with offices in 16 different cities across the country, decided to contact local museums and galleries and lease some of their artwork.
Enter Huntington, West Virginia, and Marshall University. After Nelson Mullins opened an office in downtown Huntington in 2009 and grew from three employees to 40 in a span of just four years, it was time to expand and redecorate. Charlene Pieper, the law firm’s facilities coordinator based out of Columbia, South Carolina, saw a chance to do something unprecedented — work with a local university and its artists.
“Charlene was bound and determined to involve Marshall University in its decorating plans,” recalled Sandra Reed, director of the School of Art and Design. “She contacted us at least once a week before the Visual Arts Center was even open. It became a passion project for her. She really adopted both Marshall and Huntington.”
Reed also worked closely with Marc Williams, the managing partner of Nelson Mullin’s Huntington office. In 2014, the two signed an agreement that said the law firm would pay the art department a fee to have its students and faculty lend and hang their artwork throughout its sprawling offices. The deal was a win-win. Artists at the university got a chance to showcase their work in an upscale office setting, and the firm received modern, original artwork. What’s more, if the lawyers at Nelson Mullins really liked a particular piece, they had the option to purchase it.
“The money Nelson Mullins pays us is not a nominal fee,” Reed explained. “In fact, it represents 10 percent of our annual operating budget. Those funds support faculty and student professional development, such as travel to participate in conferences, workshops and residencies.”
For Williams, a former Marshall student body president in 1981-1982, the chance to help his alma mater and adorn his office walls with a wide array of art was a welcome opportunity.
“We truly enjoy the entire process. We get to meet with students and faculty, hear about their vision, review their work and make our selections,” Williams said. “It’s special when you have the opportunity to help hard-working students and faculty while, at the same time, learn more about the world of art.”
The pieces on display at Nelson Mullins cover a wide gamut including oil paintings, photography, sculpture, graphic design, tapestry and mixed media. Williams noted that there are two reasons why the partnership is particularly meaningful to him and his partners in Huntington.
“Number one, it helps Marshall, which is very important to us. And two, we get the chance to display a wide variety of pieces that you wouldn’t find in any other law office in the country — the art is cutting-edge and created by some remarkably talented students and faculty.”
Reed says the entire art community at Marshall is benefiting from their relationship with Nelson Mullins and admires the law firm’s vision and willingness to take chances.
“We are in the third year of our agreement and each year they get a little more daring with their art selections,” Reed says with a smile. “In an era of state budget deficits, Nelson Mullins gives the artists at Marshall University a safety net for continued creative growth. And that means the world to our students.”
To learn more about Marshall’s art leasing program, contact Sandra Reed at the Visual Arts Center. E-mail reedsa@marshall.edu or call 304-696-5451.
Jack Houvouras is the publisher of Marshall Magazine.
Photos: (Second and third from top) The Huntington office of Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough, LLP, leases artwork created by students and faculty at Marshall University’s School of Art and Design. (Fourth from top) Sandra Reed, director of the School of Art and Design, consults with sculptor Steve Hughart, B.F.A. Visual Art.
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Artists in the School of Art and Design not only lend the art, they also hang and install the pieces throughout the law firm. |
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Managing partner Marc Williams was integral in creating the partnership between Nelson Mullins and the College of Arts and Media— School of Art and Design. |
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Nelson Mullins attorneys Melissa Foster Bird and John Zickefoose enjoy the original artwork displayed throughout their office. |
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The pieces on display at Nelson Mullins cover a wide gamut including oil paintings, photography, sculpture, graphic design, tapestry and mixed media. |
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