The Tate Modern art museum in London has received a major donation from philanthropists Jorge M. and Darlene Pérez. The centerpiece of the gift is “Iva,” a 20-foot-long triptych by American abstract expressionist Joan Mitchell.
The painting, named after Mitchell’s German Shepherd, had been a staple in the Pérez’s Miami bedroom for years. Jorge Pérez described the decision to donate “Iva” as difficult, but stressed the importance of public access to art. “Our hope is always that our art is seen by the highest number of people.
The Tate has huge viewership, millions and millions of people coming in,” he told the BBC.
Tate’s new Joan Mitchell donation
The painting has been placed on display next to Mark Rothko’s famous murals, which Tate director Maria Balshaw calls the museum’s “crown jewels.” Balshaw expressed excitement about the pairing, saying that Mitchell’s work “will truly shine” alongside Rothko’s masterpieces.
Since Joan Mitchell’s death in 1992, her work has seen rapidly rising prices in the art market, as shown by a $29 million sale at Christie’s in 2023. These high prices have made her paintings hard for public art institutions to acquire. Jorge Pérez noted that while large American museums often have substantial collections of Mitchell’s work, this donation fills a gap at the Tate.
UK Arts Minister Sir Chris Bryant called the gift a “spectacular” act of generosity. In addition, the Pérezes will be donating works by artists from Africa and the African diaspora, and have set up an endowment to support the curation of Latin American and African art. Jorge Pérez, originally from Argentina, emphasized the importance of giving exposure to art from these regions in major global museums.
