Dayton Art Institute - Dayton, Ohio
Posted by: DougK
N 39° 45.960 W 084° 12.042
16S E 739778 N 4405534
The Dayton Art Institute (DAI) is a museum of fine arts in Dayton, Ohio, USA. The Dayton Art Institute was rated one of the top 10 best art museums in the United States for kids.
Waymark Code: WMFKF0
Location: Ohio, United States
Date Posted: 10/29/2012
Views: 6
History from
Wikipedia:
Founded in a downtown mansion in 1919 as the Dayton Museum of Fine Arts, the museum moved to a newly designed Edward B. Green building in 1930. The DAI was modeled after the Casino in the gardens of the Villa Farnese at Caprarola, and the front hillside stairway after the Italian Renaissance garden stairs at the Villa d'Este, near Rome, and Italy. It is also visible from and easily accessible from I-75, which passes through the center of Dayton.
The museum was later renamed the Dayton Art Institute as an indication of the growing importance of its school in addition to the museum. The nearly 60,000-square-foot building is now listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
From the Ohio Historic Places Dictionary:
The Dayton Art Institute ranks as the finest example of Second Renaissance Revival in the state. The success of this building is derived fro three factors:
- the beauty of the building chosen by architect Edward Green on which to base the institute, the Villa Farnese regarded as the masterpiece of the famed architect Vignola (1507-1573),
- the faithfulness to even the smallest detail and strict adherence to the original principles of the Italian Renaissance period in the interior and exterior of the building, and
- the selection of the the site on a hill overlooking the Miami River curving through the city at that point and with a view of the downtown area.
It was built in 1930 and is approached by a monumental double-out-curving stair ascending to a landing with a wall fountain and a small pool.
The museum now has a new main entrance on Belmont Park North on what was the back side of the museum building.
456 Belmonte Park North
Dayton, Ohio 45405
Phone: (937) 223-5277