Installation view, Orange Chip: Works from the Brian Tschumper Collection, Emmanuel Art Gallery, University of Colorado Denver, 2026. Photo: WM Artist Services.
Orange Chip: Works from the Brian Tschumper Collection
Curated by Sarah Watson, Director & Curator of the CU Denver Art Galleries, with curatorial support from Andrew Palamara, Gallery Coordinator
October 16 – December 11, 2026
Opening Reception: Friday, October 16 | 6:00–7:30 p.m.
Orange Chip: Works from the Brian Tschumper Collection celebrates the launch of the permanent Art Collection at the University of Colorado Denver. Made possible by the inaugural gift of thirteen artworks from the Brian Tschumper Collection, generously donated by Brian Tschumper (BA Chemistry, 1986) and Benton Greer, this exhibition offers a unique opportunity to look closely at the practice of collecting. By reflecting on how Tschumper became an art collector, found his place within the arts ecosystem, and came to value collecting with “the institution in mind,” this exhibition marks a full-circle moment in his collecting journey, culminating in his gift to CU Denver.
Orange Chip centers works that Tschumper has described as “having a personal POW! effect” on him, influencing his thinking and collecting trajectory. The artists in Orange Chip are Julie Buffalohead (Ponca Tribe of Oklahoma), Esteban Cabeza de Baca, Andrea Carlson (Grand Portage Ojibwe), Gregg Deal (Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe), Justin Favela, Yatika Starr Fields (Cherokee, Creek, and Osage), Jeffrey Gibson (Mississippi Choctaw/Cherokee), Trenton Doyle Hancock, Brad Kahlhamer, Chelsea Kaiah (White River Ute and White Mountain Apache/Irish), Sonya Kelliher-Combs (Iñupiaq and Athabascan), Cannupa Hanska Luger (Three Affiliated Tribes of Fort Berthold (Mandan, Hidatsa, and Arikara) and Lakota), Kent Monkman (Cree), Jenny Morgan, Virgil Ortiz (Cochiti Pueblo), Wendy Red Star (Apsáalooke), Eric-Paul Riege (Diné), Cara Romero (Chemehuevi), Rose B. Simpson (Santa Clara Pueblo), William Villalongo, Marie Watt (Seneca Nation), Nico Williams (Aamjiwnaang First Nation), and Steven J. Yazzie (Diné).
The exhibition traces a powerful throughline in Tschumper’s collection—that of storytelling as a tactic for cultural, political, and institutional critique. Subverting dominant Western narratives and staging sites of resistance, the artists in the exhibition create works from a place of self-determination, sovereignty, and autonomy, engaging with these ideas as both personal practices and collective, community-based ways of knowing and being. They tell their own stories—some with stark seriousness and others with biting humor. There are artists who build new worlds and imagine alternative futures, while others expose uncomfortable truths and shed light on erased histories.
The title for Orange Chip is a play on “blue chip.” The term “blue chip” originated in the game of poker, where the blue chip is the most valuable. In the 1920s, the phrase was applied to the financial market to describe high-value stocks. By the early 1970s, “blue chip” had entered the art world lexicon, as post-war and contemporary artwork—including works by living artists—became seen as financial assets. Blue-chip art—such as works by Pablo Piccasso, Andy Warhol, or Jeff Koons—has become valued not only for its artistic merit and cultural significance, but also as financial commodity, with works selling for staggering multi-million-dollar prices.
Orange Chip pokes fun at blue chip. It might fashion itself as edgier, a little anti-establishment, and perhaps even a bit punk rock. Orange is Tschumper’s favorite color, and “orange chip” is a term he has used, with a bit of irreverence, to describe his approach to collecting. We hope the ethos of the “orange chip” resonates with the values of the College of Arts and Media, where the Emmanuel Art Gallery is housed, and where we value and embrace risk-takers, innovators, weirdos, and punks.
This exhibition is made possible by the generous support of the College of Arts & Media at the University of Colorado Denver.
More about the CU Denver Art Collection
This important gift includes works by twelve contemporary artists—Julie Buffalohead (Ponca Tribe of Oklahoma), José Carlos Martinat, Kent Monkman (Cree), Moris, Ulf Puder, Cara Romero (Chemehuevi), Anne Samat, Rose B. Simpson (Santa Clara Pueblo), Derrick Velasquez, William Villalongo, Steven J. Yazzie (Diné), and Xi Zhang. Reflecting a wide range of cultural perspectives and artistic traditions, these artists’ contributions resonate with CU Denver’s mission to serve as a radically inclusive and diverse learning community centered on transformative student experiences. Unlike many university art collections that are displayed behind glass in a museum or kept away in storage, the works in the CU Denver Art Collection will be installed in January of 2027 in student-focused locations around campus including in the Student Commons, Tivoli Annex, and CU Denver Business School.
Opening reception photos: Paul Wedlake