Building on a Legacy

Roy J. Carver, Sr., knew how to turn a big idea into a thriving business empire—and he also understood the power of private giving. The Muscatine, Iowa, industrialist and philanthropist helped transform the state of Iowa and the University of Iowa, as well as the UI’s art museum, through his visionary support.

Nearly five decades ago, Carver, Sr., and his wife, Lucille, made a historic $3.5 million donation to the University of Iowa, a portion of which established the Carver Wing of the UI’s Museum of Art. This gift created 13,000 square feet of space for the Carver Gallery and Sculpture Court, the Lasansky Room, the Print Study Room and Curatorial Galleries, and work areas. It reflected the Carvers’ love of Iowa and their belief that art and culture played an integral role in Iowans’ educational experiences.

Today, the Roy J. Carver Charitable Trust, of Muscatine, Iowa, continues to honor the couple’s commitment to the arts. In April 2020, the trust made a generous donation of $500,000 for the UI Stanley Museum of Art’s new building, which is scheduled to open in 2022. This gift will allow the museum to host intellectually challenging exhibitions; engage students, scholars, and art lovers; and inspire fresh ways of thinking about art collections and partnerships. It resulted in the naming of the Carver Trust Gallery, which will showcase important works from the museum’s collection.

Carver, Sr., established the Carver Trust in his will before his death in 1981. The organization is one of Iowa’s largest private philanthropic foundations—and also is the largest donor to the University of Iowa. As of November 2020, the trust had donated more than $202 million to Iowa, in support of everything from endowed faculty positions and research to student scholarships and the arts.

“Both the Carver family and the trust have helped our students, faculty, and visitors explore the human experience through exceptional works of art,” says Lauren Lessing, director of the UI Stanley Museum of Art. “This continued partnership will allow them to keep doing so far into the future.”