Local businessman turns into art advocate

Kimberley McGee

Friday, Sept. 14, 2001 | 10:11 a.m.

Art collector George Sturman has surrounded himself with beauty -- or at least his idea of beauty.

And he wants to share that with Las Vegas at his George L. Sturman Museum of Fine Art on West Charleston Boulevard, which opened Wednesday.

The 2,500-square-foot gallery on the second floor of the Arts Factory holds 100 pieces from Sturman's personal collection of rare drawings and unusual prints from notable artists. The display includes African art, sculptures and original comic-strip art.

For the past 50 years the 80-year-old retired business owner has collected art from dealers around the world. The bulk of his collection is drawings and first-edition prints from such famous artists (and celebrities who are artistic hobbiests) as Alexander Calder, Salvador Dali, Willem de Kooning, Robert De Niro and Henri Matisse.

Sturman said he has admired drawings of famous painters because the sketches are the physical manifestations of the artists' initial intentions, he said. They are paper drawings of what their minds see.

"It relates to you," Sturman said from his desk at the museum. "They put their first impression down on paper and ink and it gets to you."

So much so that Sturman wanted to expand the number of people who had a chance to gaze upon the drawings. He brought the piece out of hiding for the eyes of the public to behold.

"I wanted to share what I had," Sturman said. "It will be a different type of museum, a teaching museum."

From his perch at his small desk in the middle of the room, Sturman can sit and talk to visitors as they circle the gallery and admire his art.

Sturman said he plans to be there every day to answer questions or assist local artists looking for advice or the exhibit room. The public should feel welcome when they walk into a museum, he said, not intimidated or uncomfortable.

"I will be here personally to talk to people, whoever comes in, because I want this to be a warm museum," Sturman said. "Come in and look at my pictures. We can talk about them."

In 1975 Sturman opened a souvenir shop, Tiffany Bazarr, on Fremont Street in downtown Las Vegas. He opened a few more storefronts downtown, but sold them in the early '90s when buildings began to be razed to make way for the Fremont Street Experience.

"Everything was changing," Sturman said.

Except for him.

He continued to want to work, and collect art. In 1992 he opened the George L. Sturman Gallery, which sold paintings (as opposed to only exhibiting them, as the new museum does), at the Arts Factory.

"They were trying to build up downtown," he said. "I thought it was a good idea."

But the progress was slow.

Sturman said he hopes the museum will provide a reason for people to visit downtown, as well as provide hours of entertainment for himself.

Sturman's personal approach to collecting and showing art is not unusual in the art world, but certainly noteworthy, said Marianne Lorenz, executive director of the Las Vegas Art Museum.

"He has an eye for quality," Lorenz said.

In lieu of an admission fee, Sturman is asking for a $5 donation to the museum and will offer exhibit space to up-and-coming artists.

Sturman's museum is welcomed by the growing local arts community, Lorenz said. The fact that the collector will be there to discuss the art, how he obtained it and what the works means to him personally is an unusual treat for any art enthusiast, she said.

"Part of the greatest allure is that they are his things, and he is sharing with the public and he's right there to talk to," Lorenz said.

This is not Sturman's only charitable art endeavor. Five years ago he donated a large collection of comic-strip art to the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C., which he had sought out in art shops and from dealers since the late '60s.

It seemed such a pleasure to collect the pieces, and such a waste for only one man to enjoy, he said.

"I wanted it to be preserved for everybody to take a look at," Sturman said.

Plans for the Guggenheim Museum to open in October at the Venetian, as well as the success of the Las Vegas Art Museum, inspired Sturman.

"Things are beginning to happen here," Sturman said. "I felt it was time for me to show this collection."

Rather than have his collection split up in galleries or museums for short periods of time, Sturman decided to simply show it himself. This way he can change out pieces in the collection as the mood strikes him.

"Every month or so I'll put up something new, something different," Sturman said. "There's a lot to see here."

Which is his favorite?

"The next one," Sturman said.