The Dayton Art Institute

Founded in 1919, The Dayton Art Institute is one of the region's premier fine arts museums. In addition to exhibiting outstanding special exhibitions and impressive collections of art, spanning 5,000 years of art history from throughout the world, the museum is renowned for its array of education programming for diverse audiences. The Dayton Art Institute hosts concerts, social events and more including its signature events the annual Art Ball and Oktoberfest. The Dayton Art Institute is also one of the area's premier settings for weddings, parties, corporate meetings and special events. The Dayton Art Institute sits atop a hill on the edge of the Great Miami River overlooking downtown Dayton. The museum's landmark building, designed by prominent museum architect Edward B. Green of Buffalo and completed in 1930, was modeled after the Villa d'Este near Rome and the Villa Farnese at Caprarola in Italy, both examples of sixteenth century Italian Renaissance architecture.