SITE131 proposes as its core pursuit to spotlight the concept of pairing — presenting new art from America and abroad side-by-side with new works by Texas artists. By coupling bright, emerging talents who deal with similar concerns, the art audience sees novel connections and finds a unique context for understanding contemporary art in new ways. SITE131 faces the dramatic Calatrava bridge and dyna
mic Dallas skyline as an energetic contemporary artspace. A hub for major private collections, Dallas also boasts five Pritzker-awarded buildings, popular Art Fair, and the largest fundraising auction of contemporary art in the U.S. Located near downtown in Dallas’ Design District, developers and visionaries are quickly expanding its design and living opportunities. SITE131 complements Dallas’ art community which includes an encyclopedic art museum with strong contemporary collection, modern sculpture center, artist-run spaces, large and intimate private spaces, commercial and university galleries, and an artists’ residency program. DUAL VISIONARIES: Building an audience based on artwork epitomizes the vision of arts professional Joan Davidow. As director/curator at Dallas Contemporary and Arlington Museum of Art and McDermott Curatorial intern at Dallas Museum of Art, Davidow built her 30-year arts career in North Texas on the concept that all ages from all walks of life can appreciate and understand art of the 21st century. Her multiple careers in the art world include her role as an arts educator inventing a nationally awarded Art Think program, master’s professor at Southern Methodist University, commentator on KERA public radio, art collector, and philanthropist who donated her art collection to the University of Texas at Dallas. Entrepreneur and art collector Seth Davidow now focuses his skills on investing in and managing commercial properties in transitional core neighborhoods surrounding Uptown and downtown, including the thoughtful restoration of this exceptional mid-century specimen. He envisions SITE131 as the perfect symbiosis, anchoring its design district commercial space with a new contemporary art attraction, but also creating with his mother a venue to engage her passion for unveiling new art and making contemporary art accessible to other collectors.
