Cleve Carney gift provides arts legacy to College of DuPage

DuPage County native and Glen Ellyn resident Cleve Carney has provided a seven-figure gift to the College of DuPage Foundation that will create an arts legacy for the community.

The gift will be used to establish the Cleve Carney Art Space in the McAninch Arts Center and the Cleve Carney Art Space Endowment Fund, which will support the exhibition of contemporary art in the new space and provide funding to purchase artwork for the College of DuPage Permanent Art Collection.

“We are so thankful to Mr. Carney for this generous gift,” said Catherine Brod, vice president of Development at College of DuPage and executive director of the College's Foundation. “He is making art more accessible to both students and the community.”

The gift consists of a $700,000 donation and a gift in kind of artwork. The total amount exceeds $1 million, but an exact figure is unknown until the artwork is appraised, Brod said.

Carney developed his lifelong love of the arts as a child. An avid art collector, he took an interest in new and upcoming artists, embracing both the work and the person. His extensive philanthropic endeavors include serving on the board and as board president for the DuPage Community Foundation; serving on the boards of the Collectors Forum at the Museum of Contemporary Art and the Society for Contemporary Art at the Art Institute of Chicago; and supporting such institutions as the B.R. Ryall YMCA, Central DuPage Hospital, Morton Arboretum, the Wheaton Lions Club, the Hyde Park Art Center and the Elmhurst Art Museum, where he served on its executive board.

In 2006, Carney was named Philanthropist of the Year by the West Suburban Philanthropic Network.

The new Cleve Carney Art Space will be a one-story addition on the west side of the McAninch Arts Center. It will be constructed as part of the upcoming renovations to the center that begin later this year.

Stephen Cummins, director of Performing Arts at the McAninch Arts Center, said the gift will provide learning tools for both students and the community.

“Through Mr. Carney's wonderful gift, we can strengthen our institution-wide commitment to art,” he said. “It's a contribution that will impact our community for many years to come.”

For more information about the Cleve Carney Art Space Endowment Fund, call the College of DuPage Foundation at (630) 942-2462 or email fdnnews@cod.edu.