A curator and enthusiastic art collector, Martin S. Parker, AB ’73, has long enjoyed being an engaged member of the artistic community in South Florida and is an avid collector of works by living Cuban artists.
Parker’s dedicated support of the Lowe Art Museum, one of this region’s most treasured cultural institutions, goes back many years. In December 2012, he curated an exhibition of works by UM alumna Vanessa Garcia, MFA 2009, in
The Mostly Cuban and Cuban-American Show, at Miami’s Fortress Art Gallery. He has also organized showings for photographer Gary Dean Mercer Clark. Parker owns pieces by both Garcia and Mercer Clark. He is a member of the Lowe’s Directors Circle and recently established a planned gift that would include a donation of notable works by Cuban artists Eduardo Sarmiento, Carlos Estevez, and Luis Cruz Azaceta—additionally providing for their maintenance. The generous spirit of Parker’s donation to the Lowe will expose the public to these masters, giving others the opportunity to enjoy the art he has cherished for many years. His contribution will also forever link him to the Museum and promote the standard of excellence in exhibitions and educational programming that has become synonymous with the Lowe.
