Around the world with John Deere.

If you ask curator Larry Jonson whether the John Deere collection has a particular theme, he'll tell you it's a "potpourri." And he's proud of that quality, too. "You can see anything from primitive New Guinea artifacts to an English crewelwork piece from 1625 to a Grant Wood painting," he says. In fact, you could say that diversity -- the theme of divergent cultures, concepts and ideas -- is the point of the collection.

That's no accident. Back in 1965, then chairman William Hewitt decided to start a collection that would harmonize with the architecture of the company's Moline, Ill., headquarters and that would enrich the employees' environment. But his aim wasn't just esthetics. If employees were exposed to different cultures through art, he reasoned, they might get a better handle on how cultural factors affect John Deere's businesses. With that in mind, Hewitt decided to buy pieces for the fledgling collection from countries in which the

company did business.

Today, it's still traditional for the company's chairman to choose new art acquisitions. The company also buys directly from artists and galleries, and it seeks out native talent by encouraging artists to submit samples of their work, such as slides, pamphlets and brochures, which it keeps on file. The collection currently totals about 1,500 pieces, of which 600 are considered "important" works by well-known artists. The media range from paintings, sculptures and collages to ancient artifacts and textiles.

What do John Deere employees think about all this? According to Jonson, most really like the art collection and take a great deal of pride in their surroundings. Although they don't get to pick the art in their immediate environment, almost all of the pieces are out in the open and touchable. "The majority of them aren't national treasures," he explains. "We trust people to use their own judgment in experiencing the art."

But that doesn't mean there isn't room for some good-natured pranks. Jonson recalls one piece that was "always a lot of fun." The artist had mounted pieces of driftwood on a canvas and then painted them to look like insects, he explains. One day, Jonson found a can of Raid next to the work, and another time someone hung two strips of fly paper on it. Panic ensues when employees get wind that the piece might be coming soon to a floor near them. "We get notes from people begging us not to hang it in their vicinity," Jonson chuckles.

All jokes aside, John Deere takes its stewardship responsibilities very seriously. "We try in every way to take care of these works for future generations," Jonson explains. He even issues an annual "state-of-the-art" report, in which he apprises senior management of any problems, restoration or otherwise, relating to the artwork. This conscientiousness is one reason John Deere stays out of the lending business. At one time, the company regularly lent its pride and joy, Grant Wood's "Fall Plowing," to various museums and exhibits. But globetrotting days are over. After the painting logged 35,000 miles, with 17 museum stopovers, "it was time to let it rest," Jonson says. Considering the scope and quality of the rest of the collection, you could certainly say it's resting in good company.