Like many of you, we’ve been watching the developments surrounding the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and have seen the troubling news that the spread continues at an explosive rate, resulting in record numbers of cases. Taking that trend into account, and following the recent guidance of the Governor and state and local health officials, we have made the decision to cancel all previously scheduled public events and close the Decorative Arts Center of Ohio's buildings to the public.
We will continue to monitor the situation closely and determine a reopening date when appropriate. While our staff has taken extensive precautions to make visits as safe as possible, these discouraging developments only signal that this temporary closure is best for everyone’s health and safety.
We are so excited to share with you two amazing exhibits, Russian Decorative Arts from the Tsars to the USSR and A Russian Christmas, this year’s version of our always popular holiday display. Please know that in the absence of in-person experiences, we will continue to provide to our membership and community a wide selection of virtual experiences, both via our website and social media. This will include curator tours, talks by experts, arts education programs, related materials on our blog, and other unique and exciting opportunities we are actively working to develop in response to the undeniable realities we all face. Please see below for virtual tours of our exhibitions.
The health, safety, and well-being of our guests, supporters, and community are our highest priority. We appreciate your patience, flexibility, and understanding during these challenging times.
We deeply appreciate your support, and we can’t wait to welcome you back to DACO, in-person, as soon as we are able.
Take care and best regards,
Jason Crabill, Executive Director
We will continue to monitor the situation closely and determine a reopening date when appropriate. While our staff has taken extensive precautions to make visits as safe as possible, these discouraging developments only signal that this temporary closure is best for everyone’s health and safety.
We are so excited to share with you two amazing exhibits, Russian Decorative Arts from the Tsars to the USSR and A Russian Christmas, this year’s version of our always popular holiday display. Please know that in the absence of in-person experiences, we will continue to provide to our membership and community a wide selection of virtual experiences, both via our website and social media. This will include curator tours, talks by experts, arts education programs, related materials on our blog, and other unique and exciting opportunities we are actively working to develop in response to the undeniable realities we all face. Please see below for virtual tours of our exhibitions.
The health, safety, and well-being of our guests, supporters, and community are our highest priority. We appreciate your patience, flexibility, and understanding during these challenging times.
We deeply appreciate your support, and we can’t wait to welcome you back to DACO, in-person, as soon as we are able.
Take care and best regards,
Jason Crabill, Executive Director
Current Exhibition
Russian Decorative Arts from the Tsars to the USSR
Michael Reese, Curator
2020 - February 28, 2021
Be transported to the Russia of decades past. From the decadence of the tsars to the destitute communist-rule years, Russian history is filled with contradictions. During the Bolshevik Revolution, a significant amount of Russian-made art was destroyed, lost, or taken from the country. Curator Michael Reese has acquired an incredible personal collection of Russian art from that period that he is now sharing for the first time at the Decorative Arts Center of Ohio. From decades of collecting Russian decorative arts, commissioning works from USSR artists, and exploring Russia's vast territories, Reese takes us on a visual journey through Russian history from the time of the tsars to the fall of the USSR. The exhibition paints a clear decorative picture of what it was like to live in Russia during those tumultuous times. Featured objects tell stories of wealth and poverty, political struggle, fashion, and religion.
Support for the exhibition provided by The Fox Foundation, Inc. and The Johns Family
Michael Reese, Curator
2020 - February 28, 2021
Be transported to the Russia of decades past. From the decadence of the tsars to the destitute communist-rule years, Russian history is filled with contradictions. During the Bolshevik Revolution, a significant amount of Russian-made art was destroyed, lost, or taken from the country. Curator Michael Reese has acquired an incredible personal collection of Russian art from that period that he is now sharing for the first time at the Decorative Arts Center of Ohio. From decades of collecting Russian decorative arts, commissioning works from USSR artists, and exploring Russia's vast territories, Reese takes us on a visual journey through Russian history from the time of the tsars to the fall of the USSR. The exhibition paints a clear decorative picture of what it was like to live in Russia during those tumultuous times. Featured objects tell stories of wealth and poverty, political struggle, fashion, and religion.
Support for the exhibition provided by The Fox Foundation, Inc. and The Johns Family
Curator's Talk
Join Curator Michael Reese as he talks about his collection and Russian Decorative Arts from the Tsars to the USSR
Join Curator Michael Reese as he talks about his collection and Russian Decorative Arts from the Tsars to the USSR
Explore the Exhibition
Click through the thumbnails below to view featured objects from our current exhibition.
Click through the thumbnails below to view featured objects from our current exhibition.
Russian Fashion Virtual Tour
Gayle Strege, Curator of the Historic Costume and Textiles Collection at Ohio State University, talks about the clothing included in the exhibition.
Gayle Strege, Curator of the Historic Costume and Textiles Collection at Ohio State University, talks about the clothing included in the exhibition.
A Russian Christmas
George and Jeanne Johnson, Curators
2020 - January 8, 2021
Once again, the Christmas display by George and Jeanne Johnson will reflect the current exhibition. The Rising Room boasts a tree filled with Christopher Radko decorations, the hall exhibits Russian-made decorations, and the Double Parlors become a Siberian forest with aluminum trees that reflect the US - USSR space race of the 1960s. The Lower Level Gallery displays Christmas decorations made in post-WWII Soviet Bloc countries.
George and Jeanne Johnson, Curators
2020 - January 8, 2021
Once again, the Christmas display by George and Jeanne Johnson will reflect the current exhibition. The Rising Room boasts a tree filled with Christopher Radko decorations, the hall exhibits Russian-made decorations, and the Double Parlors become a Siberian forest with aluminum trees that reflect the US - USSR space race of the 1960s. The Lower Level Gallery displays Christmas decorations made in post-WWII Soviet Bloc countries.
Christmas Curator Talk
Join Curator Dr. George Johnson as he shares his personal insights on A Russian Christmas.
Join Curator Dr. George Johnson as he shares his personal insights on A Russian Christmas.
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Spotlight
From the massive archives of the Ohio History Connection, the Spotlight mini-installation will rotate every six months in the parlors of the Reese-Peters House. Our current exhibition features Hall China Company tea services from the 1940s.
Images courtesy of the Ohio History Connection H 87695_002 and H 87706
From the massive archives of the Ohio History Connection, the Spotlight mini-installation will rotate every six months in the parlors of the Reese-Peters House. Our current exhibition features Hall China Company tea services from the 1940s.
Images courtesy of the Ohio History Connection H 87695_002 and H 87706
Exhibition Programming
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Historian Talk: Russia in War and Revolution
Join Professor Nicholas B. Breyfogle, Ph.D, for a look at the end of tsarist Russia, from the savage destruction of the First World War, to the 1917 Revolutions, the Civil War, and the establishment of Bolshevik power and the world's first communist society. For further reading, Prof Breyfogle recommends: Orlando Figes, Revolutionary Russia, 1891-1991: A History Orlando Figes, Natasha's Dance: A Cultural History of Russia Sheila Fitzpatrick, The Russian Revolution Sheila Fitzpatrick, On Stalin's Team: The Years of Living Dangerously in Soviet Politics S. A. Smith, Russia in Revolution: An Empire in Crisis, 1890 to 1928 Ronald Suny, Stalin: Passage to Revolution Soviet History online: http://soviethistory.msu.edu/ |
For films, Prof Breyfogle recommends:
Documentaries The October Revolution in Russia https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z95Ed9OK87k&list=PL-aFCEaxbXd-NF9HqpYlVo0JvZFXhzkGS&index=15 The Revolution That Shaped Russia https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OHZ3Qww9kIY Stalingrad: The Turning Point of WWII in Europe https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tzxd_Hy1Myw&list=PL-aFCEaxbXd-NF9HqpYlVo0JvZFXhzkGS&index=1 Russia’s War: Blood upon the Snow (9 art documentary on WWII and the Soviet Union) My Perestroika Feature Films Reds Komissar/Commissar Doctor Zhivago Burnt by the Sun Come and See (viewer warning -very graphic about WWII) Moscow Doesn’t Believe in Tears Russian Ark (amazing film set in one moving take through the Hermitage, set in 19th C. Beautiful cinematography) Leviathan (profoundly dark look at contemporary Russia) The Irony of Fate, or Enjoy Your Bath! (the culturally equivalent holiday movie to It’s a Wonderful Life) |
Valentines from the Collection of George and Jeanne Johnson
Dr. George Johnson shares the history of Valentine cards and some of the incredible historic cards from his collection.
Dr. George Johnson shares the history of Valentine cards and some of the incredible historic cards from his collection.
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Upcoming Exhibitions
Distinctly Paramount: Fashion & Costume from the Paramount Pictures Archive
June 5, 2021 - January 2, 2022
Hollywood has been a long-time influencer in American fashion - and fashion designers have influenced Hollywood. It is truly a symbiotic relationship. Paramount Pictures has been at the forefront of defining style in motion pictures and television for over 100 years. Randall Thropp brings a new exhibit to the Decorative Arts Center of Ohio celebrating studio-created costumes as well as purchased fashions used on camera. It promises to be a colorful exhibition with many costumes seen on exhibit for the first time. Costumes by Edith Head along with individual pieces by Valentino, Roberto Cavalli, Alexander McQueen, Nolan Miller and others will be featured.
Punctuating the exhibit is a collection of “mood” boards created for the film ROCKETMAN by costume designer Julian Day. A “mood” board is an important part of the creative process. It’s an assemblage of images to help guide the costume designer in replicating a specific period in time or to dictate a color palate. An exhibit of these boards and some other costume design elements will be on display early April in the Lower Level Gallery of the Decorative Arts Center of Ohio.
During the Fall season, new costumes and accessories will be added. This includes a special “Victorian Christmas” display in November incorporating period costumes from the Paramount Pictures Archive.
Support comes from PNC Arts Alive and The Fox Foundation, Inc.
June 5, 2021 - January 2, 2022
Hollywood has been a long-time influencer in American fashion - and fashion designers have influenced Hollywood. It is truly a symbiotic relationship. Paramount Pictures has been at the forefront of defining style in motion pictures and television for over 100 years. Randall Thropp brings a new exhibit to the Decorative Arts Center of Ohio celebrating studio-created costumes as well as purchased fashions used on camera. It promises to be a colorful exhibition with many costumes seen on exhibit for the first time. Costumes by Edith Head along with individual pieces by Valentino, Roberto Cavalli, Alexander McQueen, Nolan Miller and others will be featured.
Punctuating the exhibit is a collection of “mood” boards created for the film ROCKETMAN by costume designer Julian Day. A “mood” board is an important part of the creative process. It’s an assemblage of images to help guide the costume designer in replicating a specific period in time or to dictate a color palate. An exhibit of these boards and some other costume design elements will be on display early April in the Lower Level Gallery of the Decorative Arts Center of Ohio.
During the Fall season, new costumes and accessories will be added. This includes a special “Victorian Christmas” display in November incorporating period costumes from the Paramount Pictures Archive.
Support comes from PNC Arts Alive and The Fox Foundation, Inc.
Previous Exhibitions
2 + 3 x 18: Diptychs and Triptychs by 18 Contemporary Ohio Artists
July 18 - October 25, 2020
- Jan. 25 - April 26, 2020 -- Tell Me a Story Where the Bad Girl Wins: The Life and Art of Barbara Shermund
- Sept. 21 - Dec. 29, 2019 -- The Ohio Presidents: Surprising Legacies
- May 25 - Aug. 18, 2019 -- Selections from the Pizzuti Collection
- Jan. 26 - April 28, 2019 -- Lilly's World: Decorative Arts & the Art of Lilly Martin Spencer, 1840-1900
- Sept. 15 - Dec. 30, 2018 -- Imagining a Better World: The Artwork of Nelly Toll
- May 19 - Aug. 19, 2018 -- Creating the Illusion: Costumes & Characters from the Paramount Pictures Archive
- Jan. 20 - April 15, 2018 -- Artists of the Winding Road A-Z
- Sept. 9- Dec. 31, 2017 -- In Our Own Image: The Genesis of Photography and the Contemporary Eye
- May 20 - Aug. 13, 2017 -- Three Voices: Conversations on Life and Conflict
- Feb. 4 - April 23, 2017 -- Circular Abstractions: Bull's Eye Quilts
- Sept. 10 - Dec. 31, 2016 -- An Ohio Childhood: 200 Years of Growing Up
- May 21- Aug. 14, 2016 -- Edith Head and Company: Costumes and Jewelry, 1924-2015
- Jan 23 - April 24, 2016 -- Blue Walk: The Art of William Kortlander
- Sept. 12 – Dec. 31, 2015 -- Early Visions of Ohio - 1765-1865
- June 20 – Aug. 23, 2015 -- Persistence of Nature: Featuring the works of James Mason and Karen Rumora
- February 7 - May 17, 2015 -- A Tradition of Progress: Ohio Decorative Arts 1860-1945
- Oct. 25 - Dec. 31, 2014 -- Campana Brothers: Brazilian Design Now
- June 7 - Aug. 24, 2014 -- Designing Woman: Edith Head at Paramount 1924-1967
- Jan. 25 - April 13, 2014 -- My Best Friends are Potters: Ceramics from the Tim Frederich Collection
- Oct. 26 - Dec. 29, 2013 -- Joseph O'Sickey: Unifying Art, Life and Love
- May 4 - Sept. 1, 2013 -- Gorgeous Threads: A World of Textiles
- Jan. 26 - April 7, 2013 -- A Remarkable Menagerie: Animals in Art
- Oct. 20 - Dec. 30, 2012 -- Outcault/Stahler
- June 23 – Sept. 9, 2012 -- Appalachian Strings
- Jan. 21 – May 20, 2012 -- Looking Forward
- Oct. 22, 2011 – Dec. 31, 2011 -- Once Upon a Page
- June 26 – Sept. 4, 2011 -- David Hostetler Unabridged
- Jan. 29 - June 5, 2011 -- Equal in Goodness: Ohio Decorative Arts
- Oct. 23, 2010 - Jan. 2, 2011 -- The Creative Spirit
- May 22 - Sept. 5, 2010 -- Paul Hamilton: Poetry of Place
- Jan. 30 - April 18, 2010 -- Artful Paper: Cut, Folded and Fabulous
- Oct. 3, 2009 - Jan. 3, 2010 -- The Shakers: Abiding Inspiration in Faith and Design
- June 25 - Sept. 6, 2009 -- Along Water Street: New Work by Aminah Brenda Lynn Robinson
- April 4 - June 7, 2009 -- Nancy Miller: An Artist's Creative Journey
