“From Dallas to Mongolia, these artists respond to our challenging contemporary moment with humor and beauty….”

Anna Katherine Brodbeck
Hoffman Family Senior Curator of Contemporary Art
Dallas Museum of Art
.…on acquiring 12 artworks from this year’s Dallas Art Fair.

The Dallas Museum of Art has scoured the world for works of art to grace its walls and galleries. But Thursday it announced 12 acquisitions it made from its own back yard—this year’s Dallas Art Fair, which is open to ticketed attendees today through Sunday, April 23, at the Fashion Industry Gallery in the downtown Dallas Arts District.

The acquisitions were funded by the Dallas Art Fair Foundation Acquisition Program, an annual gift from the Dallas Art Fair Foundation that places works from the art fair into the DMA’s collection. They will now be added to the DMA’s permanent collection of 24,000 artworks from ancient to modern times.

“The acquisitions made at this year’s fair are perhaps the most expansive yet, representing our commitment to expanding representation in our collection from artists of the Asian, Latin American, and African diaspora,” Brodbeck said in a statement. “From Dallas to Mongolia, these artists respond to our challenging contemporary moment with humor and beauty, reinventing art historical traditions, creating alternative worlds, and challenging our preconceived notions of divisions based on identity.”

On Wednesday, Brodbeck previewed the fair with Lupe Murchison Curator of Contemporary Art Dr. Vivian Li, Interim Chief Curator and The Barbara Thomas Lemmon Senior Curator of European Art Dr. Nicole R. Myers, and a group of fund donors.

The team chose to acquire 12 artworks by nine artists: Chelsea Culprit, Uuriintuya Dagvasambuu, Karla Diaz, Michael Dumontier & Neil Farber, Riley Holloway, Yifan Jiang, Yowshien Kuo, Masamitsu Shigeta, and Nishiki Sugawara-Beda.

Program was launched in 2016

The Dallas Art Fair Foundation launched the Dallas Art Fair Foundation Acquisition Program in 2016, enabling the Dallas Museum of Art to acquire artworks from the Dallas Art Fair for the museum’s permanent collection. “This partnership proudly fosters relationships between Dallas’ institutions and international galleries, as well as elevates the city’s presence in the art world,” the organizations said in a statement.

To date, the program has funded $775,000 for the Dallas Museum of Art’s permanent collection, including this year’s grant of $100,000.

“The Dallas Art Fair is thrilled to continue its contributions to the Dallas Museum of Art’s permanent collections through the diverse group of works chosen this year, with four of the nine galleries from Dallas,” says Kelly Cornell, director of the Dallas Art Fair. “It is so gratifying to be able to integrate work from the art fair into the museum and create an entry point for artists at all stages of their career, from all parts of the world.”

The donors who provided this year’s $100,000 grant are Jim Blake, Rochelle Gores, Sheryl and Geoff Green, Kasey and Todd Lemkin, Marlo and Jeffrey Melucci, Cliff Risman, Linda and David Rogers, Gowri and Alex Sharma, and Marlene and John Sughrue, the organizations said.