The University of New Mexico Art Museum (UNMAM) is honored to announce a major gift of photographs from the collection of Daniel Greenberg and Susan Steinhauser, collectors based in Los Angeles. 

The gift comprises more than 100 photographs by 18 influential artists in contemporary photography. Photographers represented include Virginia Beahan and Laura McPhee, Julie Blackmon, Manuel Álvarez Bravo, Harry Callahan, Philip-Lorca diCorcia, John Gutmann, Todd Hido, Graciela Iturbide, Michael Kenna, Martin Kersels, Mona Kuhn, Annie Leibovitz, Susan Meiselas, Pablo Ortiz Monasterio, Herb Ritts and Stephen Shore. 

UNMAM joins major art institutions around the country that have received gifts from the world-class collections of Daniel Greenberg and Susan Steinhauser, including the J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles Contemporary Museum of Art, the National Gallery of Art, the American Folk Art Museum, the Minneapolis Institute of Art, the Smithsonian American Art Museum and the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art. Greenberg passed away in 2021. 

Advancing Access in Contemporary Photography 

UNMAM Curator of Prints and Photographs Mary Statzer says that the gift helps UNMAM diversify and expand its contemporary photography holdings, particularly around postwar period works, and works by women photographers, Mexican photographers and artists of color. “This is an important addition that aligns with our mission to make the collection more reflective of the global and cultural range of photographic practice,” she said. 

She notes that the photographs support UNMAM’s role as an academic museum both in exhibitions and by enhancing works available in the UNMAM Beaumont Newhall Study Room. “We have a student audience that’s enviable, and this gift reflects an understanding of that,” she said. “This gift is mutually beneficial, as the photographs will be seen and used regularly.” 

Focus on a Shared Student-Centered Vision

The gift was made in honor of Janet Russek, David Scheinbaum and Justin Fiset. Janet Russek and David Scheinbaum are owners of Scheinbaum & Russek Ltd. in Santa Fe. Justin Fiset is the Collection Manager for Daniel Greenberg and Susan Steinhauser.  

Fiset, who grew up in Santa Fe and Albuquerque, graduated from UNM with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in studio art. He has worked with Greenberg and Steinhauser for more than 15 years.  

While Greenberg and Steinhauser have established significant relationships with many large museums, the UNMAM gift falls within a recent set of criteria they developed that provides gifts to smaller museums that have photography collections. The criteria include offering a Master of Fine Arts in photography, serving as a public institution, and being able to absorb a relatively large gift. 

Fiset notes that Greenberg and Steinhauser have always been interested in helping museums where students and faculty actively engage with art. “We wanted to support education,” he says. “If we’re talking about these criteria, UNM is the Platonic ideal of that. It’s got this great program, it’s got this great history, it’s got this amazing collection to build on.” 

Fiset added that Steinhauser supports UNMAM’s mission as a teaching museum, citing exhibitions organized specifically around students, such as Hindsight Insight 3.0 and Hindsight Insight 4.0, which complemented UNM’s Departments of Art and Art History and Honors College curricula. 

“Susan is happy to do this. She’s really thrilled. What we’re trying to do is find places where there’s a lot of enthusiasm,” Fiset said. “We can’t meet every need but where we can, we hope it’s something really useful. And UNMAM was really excited.” 

My husband, Dan Greenberg, and I got much joy in building our photo collection. We always thought of ourselves temporary stewards and intended that the collection would go to the larger public. Over the last several years we have spent significant time in New Mexico, especially in Santa Fe. We are thrilled to be gifting a significant body of images to the University of New Mexico Art Museum where a new generation of artists, curators, scholars, and others in the arts and the larger community can be inspired by them. I am especially grateful to Justin Fiset, a UNM alum, and Santa Fe-based photographers and scholars Janet Russek and David Scheinbaum for having introduced me to the museum. It has been a pleasure working with Mary Statzer and Arif Khan. 

–Susan Steinhauser

Building on Legacy and Experience

Fiset reflected on his time as a UNM student while collaborating with Statzer to select works for the UNMAM gift. “When you’re a student starting out, you’re not traveling to the big photography museums, you’re not seeing artwork in person,” he said. When that takes place, he notes, the artworks “have this aura because you’ve talked about them in lectures, and then you see the work in person and it’s this totally different thing.” He adds that Greenberg and Steinhauer have recognized that campus museums such as UNMAM create opportunities to students to encounter actual artworks throughout their academic careers. 

The gift was part of UNMAM’s decision to launch Collections Year, pausing public exhibitions in 2025-2026 to enable staff to focus on collections care. Various donors offered gifts of approximately 200 artworks to UNMAM, all requiring cataloging, accessioning and housing despite the museum’s storage being at capacity. 

For Daniel Greenberg and Susan Steinhauser, Fiset and the UNMAM team, the gift represents not just a remarkable collection of photographs but a continuation of the shared values of education, access and community through art. 

UNMAM Director Arif Khan says the donation complements UNMAM’s recognized photography collection while underscoring its legacy. “This gift affirms UNMAM’s reputation for excellence in photography along with our commitment to creating meaningful engagement for students,” he said, noting that Fiset is a fellow UNM alum who understands how beneficial a photography collection can be for students. “It also speaks to how a UNM education can foster experiences and connections that make a real difference.”