'Spock' Hands Over Cash to OSU

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) - May 25, 2006 -- Leonard Nimoy and his wife beamed up for a visit to the contemporary arts center at Ohio State University, which will receive $40,000 from their charitable foundation.

The gift to the Wexner Center for the Arts is the largest share of the $425,000 being distributed to 21 U.S. art organizations.

The 75-year-old actor, best known for his role as Spock on "Star Trek," is also a movie director and art photographer. The Nimoy Foundation, founded in 2003, has given the Wexner Center $90,000 in grants for artist residencies.

Nimoy and his wife, Susan Bay-Nimoy, 63, who serves as vice chairwoman of the Museum of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles, toured the center Tuesday. In an interview with The Columbus Dispatch, Nimoy said contemporary art leads to the exploration and expansion of one's mind.

"And to go to that rather than run away from it is where the excitement is - to explore it, ask questions about it, research it, talk to people about it," he said.

Nimoy, who enjoys black-and-white photography, said it allows him to create an object.

"Actors contribute to a presentation, but there is no object that comes out of the work," he said. "I love the idea that I can get up in the morning with an idea and by the end of the day have something that I can give to you, hang on the wall or give to a gallery."

(Copyright 2006 by the Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

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