The Contemporary Dayton celebrates bold exhibitions, creative dialogue and a new season
By Eva Buttacavoli, Executive Director of The Contemporary Dayton
Thirty-five years ago, a group of passionate artists and community leaders came together around a shared conviction: Dayton deserved a place where contemporary art could thrive. In 1991, they founded the Dayton Visual Arts Center (DVAC) to connect the community with the artists and ideas shaping our time. What began as an artist-driven initiative quickly grew into something larger—a gathering place for experimentation, dialogue and creative exchange.
From the beginning, the organization was conceived to present ambitious contemporary art while creating opportunities for learning, dialogue and discovery. Like museums and contemporary art centers across the country, The Contemporary Dayton brings artists and ideas into the public sphere—introducing audiences to work that challenges assumptions, reflects the complexities of our time and expands how we see the world.
Over the decades, the organization evolved alongside the city it serves. As DVAC became The Contemporary Dayton, the mission deepened but the core belief remained unchanged: that artists help us understand the present, and that communities benefit when creative voices are part of civic life.
Thousands of artists have shared their work through exhibitions, installations and special projects. Many of those artists have gone on to national and international recognition. Just as importantly, the organization has provided opportunities for countless regional artists to present new work, build their careers and connect with audiences who are curious about what artists are thinking and making today.
This year’s exhibition season centers on a theme that feels especially urgent in our current cultural climate: Freedom of Expression. Across exhibitions and public programs, artists are exploring what it means to speak freely, to question power and to engage difficult ideas through creative practice.
Yet this work does not happen without challenges.Like many nonprofit arts organizations across the country, The Contemporary Dayton is navigating a difficult funding environment. Recently, federal support that had been awarded through the National Endowment for the Arts was withdrawn—a loss that is felt deeply by organizations committed to serving their communities through the arts. At a moment when artists are asking important questions about freedom of expression and civic life, sustaining the spaces where those questions can be explored has become both more difficult and more essential.
Throughout its 35-year history, the strength of The Contemporary Dayton has come from the community that surrounds it—artists, audiences, supporters and partners who believe that art matters.
Anniversaries invite reflection, but they also point toward the future. As The Contemporary Dayton marks 35 years, the commitment remains clear: to support artists, to welcome new voices and to ensure that contemporary art continues to play an active role in Dayton’s cultural life.
Because when artists are given the freedom to express, communities are given the opportunity to imagine what comes next.
Eva Buttacavoli is the executive director of The Contemporary Dayton (The Co). Since 2011 she has led the organization through a rebrand and a $1.7 million capital campaign to expand programs and move to its current home at The Dayton Arcade.
