Secret Arts Patron
Mysterious donor doles out $9 million to Dallas Museum of Art
Thanks to an anonymous donor, the Dallas Museum of Art is now $9 million richer. The money will support the museum's free admission policy and allow the DMA to digitize its permanent collection with an interactive, educational website.
The DMA revealed the sizable donation on November 5. Museum director Maxwell L. Anderson praised the donor's generosity.
"We are deeply grateful to our donor for the exceeding generosity and the significance of this gift," Anderson said in a statement. "With this donation, the DMA will become one of the world’s most open and accessible museums."
The funds will be distributed almost evenly between free admission support ($4 million) and collection digitization ($5 million). When the museum returned to a free admission policy in January, it also created DMA Friends, a free membership program that has attracted more than 35,000 new visitors.
DMA deputy director Robert Stein called the new donation a strong vote of confidence in the museum's open access efforts onsite and online. "This donation is making an important statement about the value of open cultural data for the future of our field," Stein said in a statement.
"I’m thrilled about the opportunity this provides for the DMA to make a significant impact in the field digitally."
The donation goes into effect immediately and includes a provision to raise $2 million in matching funds over a five-year period.