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The Dayton Art Institute

DAI Museum Store Adds New Items and Offers Free Shipping

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Although the Dayton Art Institute and its Museum Store remain closed due to efforts to minimize the spread of the coronavirus (COVID-19), the DAI’s online Museum Store remains open for business. More than 100 new products have recently been added to the online store, which features everything from items related to DAI exhibitions, art books and unique jewelry, to housewares, boredom busters for the kids and gift items for nearly every occasion. Newly added products include decorative items from Charley Harper Studio and Macone Clay, jewelry and apparel, fun gifts and activities for the kids, and a variety of art-related home décor items.

 

While many sites like Amazon are currently only shipping essential items, the DAI’s full online store is available for purchase, offering a variety of options for birthdays, weddings or other special events that you might not be able to attend in person right now. While the museum is closed, the online store is offering free shipping, as well as complimentary gift wrapping, for all orders.

 

Like other arts organizations and businesses around the country, the Dayton Art Institute is facing many financial challenges and uncertainties during this closure due to the pandemic crisis. The DAI needs the public’s support more than ever, and all purchases from the online Museum Store directly benefit the museum.

Here are a few of the featured new items:

Poppies Mini Ruffle Vase $59.00
Sweet Statement. Ready for fresh cut florals or displayed by themselves.
Details:
Approximately 6″H

Handmade by Glass Eye Studio in Seattle, WA

 

 

 

 

Japanese Garden $16.95

For centuries, Japanese artists have honored simple beauty in prints, paintings and books. This adult coloring book recreates 23 artworks for you to color—images of flowers and trees, garden residents such as the bird and the butterfly, and in-the-moment scenes of people taking in the pleasures of these peaceful corners of the world.
Starry Sky LED Light $11.95
If your little one is scared of the dark, the Starry Sky LED Room Light sheds light on peaceful sleep and less fear. Twinkling stars are backlit by an LED glow that mimics the night sky while lighting up dark bedrooms.
Macone Wall Art $28.00
Wood art by Michael Macone with the quote, “Family: A little bit of crazy, a little bit of loud, a whole lot of love.”  Printed with archival ink on archival paper, attached to wood and UV coated to last a lifetime. Can hang or stand with included peg. Measures 4.25″ X 10.25.”

Go to www.daytonartinstitute.org/shopdai to shop the online Museum Store, and be sure to also follow the store’s new Facebook page, at www.facebook.com/daimuseumstore, for additional offers and updates.

Dayton Art Institute Names Chief Curator

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The Dayton Art Institute has announced the appointment of Jerry N. Smith, Ph.D., as the museum’s Chief Curator, effective September 26.

“After an extensive national search, we are excited to welcome Dr. Jerry Smith to the museum and the Dayton community,” said The Dayton Art Institute’s Director & CEO Michael R. Roediger. “Dr. Smith possesses an extensive curatorial, scholarly and administrative background–skills that will be immediately utilized as the museum prepares for its centennial in 2019.”

 

In his role as Chief Curator, Smith will provide leadership to the museum’s curatorial department, guiding the vision of future collection installations and special exhibitions. A key part of that will be the reinstallation and reinterpretation of the museum’s permanent collection galleries, planned as part of The DAI’s centennial celebrations. The Dayton Art Institute’s permanent collection numbers more than 26,000 objects, with as many as 1,000 on view at any time.

 

“I’m excited to join the Dayton community and am looking forward to working with The Dayton Art Institute’s team,” Smith said. “With a world-class collection and storied history, The DAI has a tremendous amount to celebrate with its coming centennial. I’m honored to be part of that celebration.”

 

Smith most recently served as the Hazel and William Hough Chief Curator and Interim Director at the Museum of Fine Arts, St. Petersburg, Florida. Prior, he held leadership positions at the Phoenix Art Museum for more than a decade, where he began as associate curator in 2005, was appointed to Curator of American and Western American Art in 2009, and later to Curator of American and European Art to 1950 and Art of the American West in 2014.

 

In these positions he introduced numerous works into the museums’ collections and oversaw more than 40 exhibitions that spanned the art of the Renaissance to American modernism and contemporary art of the American West. The diverse exhibitions he has curated or co-curated include Georgia O’Keeffe: Ingénue to Icon, Riding Tall: The Cowboy in Art, Leonardo da Vinci’s Codex Leicester and The Power of Observation and Andy Warhol: Portraits.

 

He was a contributing organizer and catalogue essayist for In Contemporary Rhythm: The Art of Ernest L. Blumenschein and Cézanne and American Modernism. Smith authored Howard Post: Western Perspectives, and was co-author of Don Coen: The Migrant Series. He recently collaborated on a chapter for Visitor-Centered Exhibitions and Edu-Curation in Art Museums (2017).

 

Smith holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees in art history from Arizona State University and received his Ph.D. in the history of art from the University of Kansas. Active in The Association of Art Museum Curators, he serves in career support groups, as liaison between mentors and mentees, and currently sits on the governance and nominating committee.

Last Call For Grandma Moses and the Handicraft Tradition

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checkered_house_web800Handicrafts and fine art don’t normally go together in my mind. My grandmother was a great quilter, yet I have never associated her traditional needlework as fine art. If you are like me in this thinking, think again.

The Dayton Art Institute is closing a months long exhibition centered on Grandma Moses. American Sampler: Grandma Moses and the Handicraft Tradition closes on February 21 and you don’t want to miss it.

Grandma Moses, Anna Mary Robertson Moses (1860–1961), was a lifelong professional seamstress until she begin creating works of art late in life at age 78. A sample of more than 50 of her pieces are on display. Her work covers a variety of mediums including paintings, embroideries, a quilt and other handmade items.

The entire exhibit pays homage to other artists and handicraft works. A tapesty sampler from England that dates to 1675 makes the modest fee worth it. Just feet away hangs a Grandma Moses quilt that was reminiscent of my own grandma’s quilting style.

Grandma Moses and Woldemer Neufelds paintings of rolling hills beyond small midwestern towns tell a story. The paintings are a view into American life 60, 70 or 80 years ago. I found myself moving back and forth between the two comparing styles. Both Moses and Neufeld lend their brush to depicting rural Ohio.

Checkered House is one of her paintings on display. Grandma Moses shares personal stories about this home that has been part of her family in New York for more than 200 years. The personal nature of her work and its approachability makes this art exhibition one appealing to the entire family.

Organized by The Dayton Art Institute and curated by Dr. Aimee Marcereau DeGalan, Chief Curator, Curator of European Art, American Sampler is on until February 21, 2016.

Exhibition Admission
Museum Members: Free
Adults: $14
Seniors (60+): $11
Students (18+ w/ID): $11
Active Military: $11
Groups (10 or more): $11
Youth (ages 7-17): $6
Children (6 & under): Free

Advance tickets can be purchased at etix.com

Prices include admission to the exhibition and the museum’s permanent collection.

Free Admission For Servicemen & Women For Call To Duty Exhibition

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callThe Dayton Art Institute will honor those who have served in the United States military with a special offer for the exhibitions Call to Duty: World War Posters and Tears of Stone: World War I Remembered, Photographs by Jane Alden Stevens.

On the first three Thursdays in September, all veterans, as well as active-duty, discharged and retired military personnel, will receive free admission to the exhibitions.

“The Dayton Art Institute is celebrating a ‘Year of American Art’ in 2015, and Call to Duty gives us the opportunity to recognize current and former military personnel who have given so much to protect our country,” says The Dayton Art Institute’s Director & CEO Michael R. Roediger.

Free admission to the special exhibitions will be offered on:

Thursday, September 3, 11:00 a.m. – 8:00 p.m.
Thursday, September 10, 2015, 11:00 a.m. – 8:00 p.m.
Thursday, September 17, 2015, 11:00 a.m. – 8:00 p.m.

Active, discharged and retired military personnel may show their military ID or DD-214 at the Guest Services Desk on those days to receive a free ticket for the exhibitions. This offer is good for one free adult admission per visit. Accompanying family members and friends may purchase exhibition tickets at the discounted rate of $11 adults and $9 seniors (age 60+). Exhibition admission is $6 youth (ages 7-17) and free for children 6 and under. Medically necessary caregivers will not be charged.

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Call to Duty includes more than 80 original images from both World Wars that helped promote a variety of homefront efforts during the wars. The exhibition also includes related items on loan from the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force and the Dayton Chapter of the American Red Cross, as well as other original items, such as signed photographs of five-star generals and war bond books with local connections.

The companion exhibition, Tears of Stone, features haunting, large-format photos by Cincinnati photographer Jane Alden Stevens, depicting monuments, cemeteries and battlegrounds of World War I.

Both exhibitions are on view at The Dayton Art Institute through October 4.

For more information about the exhibitions, visit www.daytonartinstitute.org/calltoduty or call the museum at 937-223-4ART (4278).

strongCall to Duty and Tears of Stone are presented with support from Benefactor Sponsor Premier Health, Patron Sponsors DP&L, U.S. Bank and Wanda and Bill Lukens, Supporting Sponsors Suzi and Jeff Mikutis, Miller-Valentine Group, and the White Allen Family of Dealerships, with additional support from School of Advertising Art, Square One Salon and Spa, University of Dayton, Jessup Wealth Management and Taft/.

Call to Duty has been organized by the Reading Public Museum, Reading, PA, with additional loans provided by the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force, Red Cross Dayton, and private collections.

Japan Goes Deco ** Ticket Giveaway**

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vignette-570A modern girl walks into an art museum…

Part of the MostMetro team recently had the privilege of attending a guided tour of the newest exhibit at Dayton Art Institute. Dr. Aimee Marcereau lead the tour and explained in rich detail the highlights of Deco Japan: Shaping Art and Culture. Between the two World Wars, Japan entered into a time of jazz, leisure travel, nationalism and the emergence of “the modern girl”, the privately owned collection on display through January 25th, 2015 showcases the art created during this time period.

The art deco period drew inspiration from many sources internationally. You will notice long, lean lines, and simplistic forms. Upon closer inspection, subtle details emerge that show an attention to detail unmatched in many other time periods. Dr. Marcereau noted, “It simultaneously maintained one foot in tradition and yet also celebrated the mechanized, modern world. Art deco’s bold colors and streamlined, yet muscular, forms celebrating progress were often deeply nationalistic, and Japan embraced the style enthusiastically, as the combination of visual strength operated in support of Japan’s expanding empire.”japan_japanese_government_railways_box290x405_1027851195

Nicole Nett– Big bold colors, clean lines, and a view into a new way of life was the focus of the over 200 pieces in this carefully curated exhibit. As you enter the first room, take note of the background music. It’s not just your everyday ambient Muzak, but rather, Japanese jazz music which was becoming prevalent during this time period. The dichotomy between the obvious traditional influences and the touches of the Western world is what makes this exhibit so unique. Ancient imagery with Mad Men-esque touches.

Lisa Grigsby – Lions and bears peacocks and rabbits and flying fish.  Not what I expected to see in DecoJapan.  But the exhibit was broader in scope and beautifully blended tradition with innovation, and was chock full of symbolism that was beautifully explained by curator Aimee Marcereau DeGalan, the DAI’s curator of collections and exhibitions.

Kim Metter –  The exhibit was well presented, giving several examples using various media to represent the subject matter. The use of textiles, metals, pottery, prints and paintings were a diverse and beautiful way to show the movement and progressive nature of Japan at that time. The homage to the European and American Art Deco movements were apparent, but the Japanese influence could still be clearly seen in the craftsmanship and classic techniques used by Asian artisans for millennia.

Brian Petro – It is an incredible show, and one any Art Deco lover should go and explore. Seeing how the Japanese interpreted the deco movement and ultimately made it their own is fascinating. The clean simple lines are amazing, and the Japanese sensibilities really shine through.

Museum Hours:1334003473_5a770

TUESDAY 11 a.m. – 8 p.m.
WEDNESDAY 11 a.m. – 8 p.m.
THURSDAY 11 a.m. – 8 p.m.
FRIDAY 11 a.m. – 8 p.m.
SATURDAY 10 a.m. – 5 p.m
SUNDAY Noon – 5 p.m.

Admission to the Museum:  Members: Free, Adults: $12, (60+): $9, Students (18+ w/ID) & Active Military: $9, Groups (10 or more): $9, Ages 7-17: $6, Ages 6 & under: Free  * Price includes admission to the special exhibition and the museum’s permanent collection. Please note that a $2 per transaction fee will be added to all ticket sales for building Preservation and Art Conservation.

DMM Ticket Giveaway:

DMM wants to share our delight with this visual feast by sending some of our readers to see this exhibit.  To enter our random drawing, fill out the form below and leave us a comment on why we should pick you!

Congrats to our ticket winners: Lauren Queen, Josh Reck and Ryburn Yukik Ryburn- enjoy the show!

Prime Time Party Rental Series Takes You Back to High School with the Prime Time Prom

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ptp_prom450The Dayton Art Institute takes you back to high school, when its Prime Time Party Rental Series presents the Prime Time Prom on Friday, May 30, 7-11 p.m.

The Prime Time Prom invites you to dress up and relive your high school glories (or create the prom experience you never had). Go elegant or go garish, just make sure you don’t miss this unforgettable grownup prom! The Prime Time Prom will feature everything you’ve come to expect from The DAI’s Prime Time Parties: great food & drinks, music for dancing, a fantastic raffle, and a few surprises. And of course there will be an awesome theme, as well as a prom king and queen!

Food and drink, as always, will be an integral part of the next Prime Time Party. The evening’s menu, provided by Elite Catering, will include high-school-themed delicacies such as mini pizzas, mini burgers & fries, a Mac-n-Cheese bar and more. Unlike high school, the Prime Time Prom will feature a cash bar, so it’s definitely a 21 and up event! The DAI’s resident mixologists will be serving up specialty cocktails with a prom theme – think “spiked punch”, etc. – and series sponsor Heidelberg Distributing Co. will be on hand with samples of some of their latest libations.

As with past parties, the Prime Time Prom will feature a raffle with fantastic prizes, highlighted by jewelry from series sponsor James Free Jewelers.

Music will be provided by Black Box, who spun the tunes for last year’s Studio 54 Disco Party. They will offer up a mix of danceable hits from a variety of eras. And of course it wouldn’t be a party without the obligatory “prom photo,” so Black Box will also provide a photo booth to capture the moment.

Costumes are always encouraged (but not required) at Prime Time Party Rental Series events, so guests are encouraged to get creative with their attire – from traditional formal wear to vintage, retro, DIY and everything in between! Not sure what to wear? Check out the Prime Time Party DIY costume ideas at www.daytonartinstitute.org/primetime and follow the Prime Time Party board on The DAI’s Pinterest page for inspiration.

The pop-culture themes of the Prime Time Party Rental series always feature a connection to the museum’s permanent collection or special exhibitions. The Prime Time Prom will feature a self-guided tour of works in the collection that have been featured at past DAI Art Balls. The elegant Art Ball is the museum’s annual black tie gala and one of its largest fundraisers. This year’s Art Ball takes place two weeks after the Prime Time Prom, on June 14.

For more about the Prime Time Prom, go to www.daytonartinstitute.org/prom.

Sponsorship support for The Prime Time Party Rental Series is provided by Presenting Sponsor Prime Time Party Rental, Supporting Sponsors Square One Salon and Spa and Heidelberg Distributing Co.,Official Jeweler James Free Jewelers, and Preferred Print Partner Dayton City Paper.

The Prime Time Party Rental Series Prime Time Prom takes place on Friday, May 30, 7 – 11 p.m. at The Dayton Art Institute. Advance tickets are $35 for museum members and $40 for non-members. Tickets purchased at the door are $40 for members and $45 for non-members. Prime Time Party Rental Series tickets include all food and entertainment for the evening. A cash bar is available with alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks.

Advance tickets may be purchased online at www.daytonartinstitute.org/primetime, by calling 937-223-4ART (4278), or in person at the museum’s Guest Services Desk during regular hours.

For more information about this and other programs at The Dayton Art Institute, please visit www.daytonartinstitute.org or call the museum at 937-223-4ART (4278). Be sure to also connect with The Dayton Art Institute on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and Instagram for additional information, behind-the-scenes photos and exclusive offers.

ABOUT THE DAYTON ART INSTITUTE

As one of the Miami Valley’s premier fine art museums, The Dayton Art Institute offers a full range of programming in addition to exhibiting its collection.  Galleries hours are Tuesday – Friday, 11 a.m. – 8 p.m., Saturday, 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. and Sunday, noon – 5 p.m. Suggested admission to the museum’s permanent collection is $8 adults, $5 seniors, active military and groups. Admission is free for museum members, students (18+ w/ID) and youth (17 and under). Some special exhibitions, programs and events may carry an additional charge and include admission to the museum’s permanent collection as part of that price. Free parking is available at the museum and the facility is fully accessible to physically challenged visitors.  The DAI’s Museum Store and Leo Bistro are open during regular museum hours. For more information, please call 937-223-4ART (4278) or visit www.daytonartinstitute.org. The Ohio Arts Council helped fund this organization with state tax dollars to encourage economic growth, educational excellence and cultural enrichment for all Ohioans. The DAI also receives support from the Montgomery County Arts and Cultural District.

 

Take Us Home: A Dayton Film from Israel

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If I told you there is a touching documentary that tells the story of the exodus of a family of Ethiopian Jews to Israel  – would you think it’s a Dayton film? Well – it is! TAKE US HOME is the most recent documentary by Aileen LeBlanc, known for telling the Joe Desch story through Dayton Codebreakers. Aileen worked with a Dayton-based team that included Mike King, Jim Klein, Michael and Sandy Bashaw, John Mays, Julia Reichert and Steven Bognar, and many others.  Major support for this project came from The Levin Family Foundation and numerous local partnerswho helped bring the story to life.

TAKE US HOME follows Fekadu who has been waiting for ten years in Ethiopia to go to Israel to reunite with his siblings and be welcomed into a more full experience with his Jewish faith. We see the rest of his family get the go-ahead for the trip, but Fekadu, his wife and their six children must stay behind. They learn their emigration is in jeopardy because of their adopted son, Worku. They must leave him behind or be forced to stay in Ethiopia under religious persecution. The audience watches the challenging decisions between faith, family and freedom. We watch how the events unfold in Ethiopia and Israel. Even returning ‘home’ to their Israel is not easy as the Ethiopian Jews are outcasts; they are overwhelmed by life in the high-tech, Hebrew-speaking country and their Jewish-ness is doubted among their new countrymen.

The Dayton premiere of this award-winning documentary will take place on Thursday, November 15 at the Dayton Art Institute. It’s presented as part of the Cultural Arts and Book Festival in partnership with FilmDayton, The Dayton Art Institute, 91.3 FM WYSO, and the Jewish Community Relations Council. A 7 PM reception precedes the 7:30PM screening of the film. Immediately following, there will be a Q&A with the filmmakers. As a special treat Worku and Fekadu will be in attendance to answer your questions about their story! Tickets are only $5 in advance and $7 at the door and may be purchased through The Dayton Art Institute Web page. [yframe url=’http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7wCfzmj9CSY&feature=plcp’]