Asian Art Museum Receives Financial Support; Union Bank of California Foundation Awards Grant to the Asian Art Museum of San Francisco For Education and Preservation

Business Wire, Sept 6, 2001

Business/Art Editors

SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sept. 6, 2001

For 35 years the Asian Art Museum of San Francisco has successfully lead a diverse global audience in discovering the unique material, aesthetic, and intellectual achievements of Asian art and culture.

In recognition of its commitment to this important mission, the Union Bank of California Foundation will provide grant assistance for the museum to continue its public programming - including live performances, courses, lectures, tours, demonstrations, and other activities -- into the new millennium.

Under its "Creative Steps" endowment program, the Foundation has presented the Asian Art Museum of San Francisco with a $25,000 grant. The Union Bank of California Foundation's "Creative Steps" endowment program provides grant assistance to deserving cultural and artistic organizations. Other recent grant recipients include the Bilingual Foundation for the Arts, the Japanese American National Museum, The Globe Theaters, and The Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco.

"The Asian Art Museum is very proud of our extensive collection of art and special exhibitions, as well as our highly regarded public programs," said Emily J. Sano, director of the Asian Art Museum. "Because we believe that art should not be viewed in a vacuum, our public programming serves to educate the public not just on the artwork alone, but on the cultural and societal influences that helped produce that artwork. The Union Bank of California Foundation has always exhibited a commitment to the preservation of culture and arts in California, and we are very grateful to be a recipient of such a generous grant."

"The Union Bank of California Foundation considers the preservation and development of the arts to be an important element of its corporate strategy," said Senior Vice President Steve Johnson. "The story of a society can be told through its art, music, and theater. By devoting a portion of our giving to organizations that promote the arts in California, we truly feel we are doing a great deal to anchor all Californians to our shared culture and our history."

About the Asian Art Museum

The Asian Art Museum is one of the largest museums in the Western world devoted exclusively to Asian art. Opened in 1966 as a result of a gift to the city of San Francisco by industrialist Avery Brundage, the museum holds more than 13,000 art objects spanning 6,000 years of history and representing countries and cultures throughout Asia. The museum employs on-staff specialists in the arts of China, Japan, Korea, India, Southeast Asia, and the Himalayas, and has its own library containing 35,000 titles, a state-of-the-art conservation laboratory, and photography studio. The museum will be open to the public in its Golden Gate Park facility through October 7, 2001, and is scheduled to open its new, expanded home at San Francisco's Civic Center in late 2002/ early 2003.

About the Union Bank of California Foundation

The Union Bank of California Foundation was formed in 1953 as the conduit for charitable contributions made by Union Bank of California, N.A., a wholly-owned subsidiary of UnionBanCal Corporation, which is a publicly traded San Francisco-based bank holding company (NYSE:UB)

Throughout its history, the bank has accepted its responsibility to help meet the charitable needs of the communities in which it is active. In 1996, as part of a groundbreaking, 10-year community reinvestment commitment, the company pledged to reinvest an amount each year equal to 4.5 percent of assets, including charitable contributions of up to 2 percent of net income - more than $9 million in the year 2000, an increase of almost 5 percent from the year earlier.

As of June 30, 2001, Union Bank of California, with assets of $35.8 billion, is the second largest commercial bank headquartered in California, with more than 8,000 employees and 250 full-service banking offices in California, Oregon and Washington and 18 international facilities.