Mission

Founded in 1885, the Detroit Institute of Arts (DIA) has been a beacon of culture for the Detroit area for well over a century. The museum includes more than 100 galleries, a 1,150-seat auditorium, a 380-seat lecture/recital hall, an art reference library, and a state-of-the-art conservation services laboratory. The DIA's collection is among the top six in the United States, comprising a multicultural and multinational survey of human creativity from prehistory through the 21st century. A hallmark of the DIA is the diversity of the collection. In addition to outstanding American, European, modern and contemporary, and graphic art, the museum holds significant works of African, Asian, Native American, Oceanic, Islamic, and ancient art.