Wiregrass Museum of Art

Mission Statement:
The mission of the Wiregrass Museum of Art is to increase awareness, education and appreciation of the visual and decorative fine arts by providing quality exhibitions and interpretive programs in Southeast Alabama; and by collecting and holding in trust important and significant works of art that reflect our cultural heritage and give inspiration and expression to the human spirit and experience.

History:-

The Wiregrass Museum of Art (WMA) was formed because of a 1986 article in a national magazine that listed Dothan, Alabama as one of the "Worst Places to Live in America." One reason for this negative outlook for the city was the lack of a museum. To address the issue, Larry Register, the Mayor at the time, appointed thirteen citizens to a committee to study the feasibility of establishing a municipal museum. After a two year study, the committee recommended to the Commission that a museum, focusing on the visual arts, be established. Twelve sites were evaluated for the prospective museum and the overwhelming choice was the historic Water and Electric Building located in downtown Dothan. This building was built in 1912-1913 and listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

The City Commission then converted the original committee to an official Museum Board and an appropriation of $50,000 was made to the Board to begin planning the new museum. In February 1988, the board hired Sam Kates as the project's director. Twenty-one invitations were then mailed to local architectural firms to submit proposals for designing the museum. The local firm of Joseph L. Donofro and Associates was awarded the job. In 1988, schematic designs for a 30,000 square foot museum were unveiled with a projected cost of 2.8 million dollars to complete the project. The City Commission expressed concern over the amount needed to complete the museum in one phase. The Museum Board submitted a revised plan to the City Commission to divide the building program into four phases. The Commission agreed to accept this new plan.

Since 1988 the museum has completed three of the four phases of the original construction plan. All of the contributions for these three phases were raised by the museum board & employees with support from the private sector. The first three phases have created 18,000 square feet of gallery space, an exhibit preparation area, a vault as well as a conference center. The museum continues to offer educational programs, cutting edge exhibitions and community events throughout the year. The WMA is continually changing and evolving but the history of the museum would not be complete without including the dedication of a handful of believers who dreamed the impossible and saw their wishes for a new dynamic art museum become a reality for Dothan and the Wiregrass Region.