In 2009 a generous gift from trustee Ross Escalette and his wife Phyllis to name the permanent art collection set in motion a new era for Chapman as a center for art in Orange County. Because Ross and Phyllis established an endowment, the collection continues to grow, infusing Chapman’s campus with new expressions of color, form and vibrancy. 

Currently, the collection comprises more than 700 pieces. Though the collection does not necessarily have a specific theme or focus, there is a special emphasis on contemporary works of Southern California artists as well as African art, Russian iconography and prints by modern American and European masters such as Rauschenberg, Lichtenstein and Nauman.

The Escalette Collection features a variety of media, such as drawing, printmaking, painting, sculpture, photography and mixed media. Works of art from the collection are regularly utilized for exhibition, classroom and research purposes.

Meet the Escalettes

 The Escalette Permament Collection of Art was founded with the belief that art is an integral part of the educational process at Chapman University. We take pride in giving our students, faculty and staff the opportunity to spend their days at Chapman surrounded by beautiful and inspirational works of art as they learn, discover and grow. As Chapman continues to grow in both size and reputation, we strive to remain faithful to the foundations of a liberal education in which seemingly disparate disciplines – like the arts and sciences — are interconnected partners in the pursuit of learning and discovery.

There are several ways to navigate our eMuseum website.

1. On the home Collections page, we have created a few groupings of objects to represent the collection, including medium, New Acquisitions, Currently on View, and Featured. We plan to continue adding more groupings as we investigate new themes and artists in our exhibitions and on-campus collaborations.
2. Another option is to use the left-hand menu. These icon buttons allow you to search by Collection, People (in our case, artists), Exhibitions, and MyCollections.

Creating your own Collection is simple; just click on the folder icon on the left-hand menu and type in your collection name. Every object on eMuseum has a "add to MyCollection" button; to add an object to your collection, simply click this button and the object will be added automatically. 

The Escalette Collection of Art staff manages artwork from the Escalette Collection on campus, including its installation, research, storage, and care, as well as organizing exhibitions and community outreach, and overseeing the Student Art Ambassador program. We also handle donations and loans of artwork within the scope of the Escalette Collections.

We are always happy to help with your questions about the art collections!  

• For collection inquiries contact Jessica Bocinski, Registrar bocinski@chapman.edu
• For tours and other inquiries contact Lindsay Shen, Director shen@chapman.edu

Student Art Ambassadors are Chapman University students who act as liaisons between the collection and the student body, host tours and workshops for groups large and small, attend all collection events, and promote the arts at Chapman.

Last year, the program expanded to include five very talented students (below). Would you like to join the Art Ambassadors program? Apply today!