DAI offers "Hello World"

Once again, the Dayton Art Institute is hosting an exhibition of extraordinary beauty and diversity.
Running through Jan. 3, 2010, it's titled "Hello Word! Rarely Seen Art from Our Collection," which displays many of the DAI's "hidden treasures" from the its vaults as well as works from other sources.
DAI director Janice Driesbach describes the eclectic exhibition as one that is a compendium of "great paintings, sculpture, prints, drawings, textiles and photography that have not recently been on view."
Moreover, the exhibition encompasses different cultures over a span of 2,000 years. It features works by Pablo Picasso, Ansel Adams, John James Audubon, Paul Cezanne, Jackson Pollock as well as Dayton artist Bing Davis.
Underscoring his decision to focus on themes in the "Hello World" exhibition, DAI curator Will South has mixed cultures and time periods in galleries of faces, figures, landscapes and flight.
"The exhibition offers visitors the chance of seeing ourselves and the commonalities we have," said South, who has a laser-sharp eye for the composition of the works of art.
For example, the faces are mostly close-up pieces of art that are more penetrating in their straight arrangement on the wall. Ditto with the sculptures and landscapes. The universal theme continues with its brilliant show of flight.
In addition, the DAI's offering of "Hello World" includes a film of interviews with DAI members and visitors as a montage of images and voices in tribute to the DAI. The montage of images and voices is an effective ways of incorporating a fresh viewpoint from the public.
Another bonus -- and its an historic one -- is the 7-minute short film titled "Dali and Disney: The Art and Animation of Destino," a experimental collaboration filmed in 1946 in the hopes of pro ducing a feature film, which never happened. Dali, a Spanish surrealistic artist, produced painting, pen-and-ink drawings and storyboards for the project.
But what remains, although brief, is a truly extraordinary slice of film making that is not to be missed. The film is offered to the public free of charge.
Tickets for the "Hello World" exhibition presented during regular museum hours are $5 for adults, $3 for seniors and students and $1 for youth ages 7-18. Museum members and children 6 and under are admitted free.
For more information, call 223-5277.