Established by Ron and Ann Pizzuti, the collection celebrates over 40 years of discovering and collecting internationally recognized and emerging artists from around the world.

The Pizzuti Collection, a new public non-profit exhibition space in the Short North Arts District of Columbus, Ohio, will open its doors to the public on September 7th with a weekend-long celebration. The grand opening events begin on Friday, September 6th, with a private launch party benefiting the Collection’s educational programs. The weekend festivities include an artist panel, held at the Columbus College of Art and Design, which features Cuban artists Alex Arrechea, Raul Cordero, Tony Mendoza and National Museum of Fine Arts, Havana, curator Corina Matamoros. The Pizzuti Collection’s mission is to foster cultural understanding and educational exchange, particularly as it relates to underrepresented voices from around the world. The Collection is a non-profit organization that presents temporary exhibitions of contemporary art from the collection of Ron and Ann Pizzuti.

The Pizzuti Collection will place special emphasis on education by programming lectures, artist talks, and educational projects. The addition of the Pizzuti Library strengthens Columbus’s tradition of high-quality libraries by adding access to over thirty years of artist and gallery catalogues, many of which are not available commercially.

The opening exhibitions feature the Pizzuti Collection through two lenses. The Inaugural Exhibition on the first and third floors presents the collection in a narrative form, using works from the collection to connect the threads of experiences, artists, and galleries that guided its formation for more than 30 years.

The Inaugural Exhibition will include works by John Chamberlain, Dave Cole, Jean Dubuffet, Carroll Dunham, Leandro Erlich, Darío Escobar, Ori Gersht, David Hammons, Guillermo Kuitca, Josiah McElheny, Louise Nevelson, and Ai Weiwei.

Additionally, the grand opening of the collection can be viewed through a thematic lens. Cuban Forever highlights compelling contemporary art, primarily by native Cuban artists. Much of the artwork in the collection was acquired via trips to artist studios in Cuba to meet and learn more about the art being produced in the country. This exhibition presents the best survey of the Cuban contemporary art scene today. The artists presented include Yoan Capote, Raúl Cordero, Enrique Raúl Martínez, Enrique Martínez Celaya, and Douglas Peréz. In addition to works by native Cubans, the exhibition includes work by Americans Michael Eastman and Teresita Fernández. Eastman’s stunning photographs of Havana and Fernández’s evocative sculptures transcend the artists’ nationalities and underscore the global environment in which Cuban artists work. The name of the exhibition, Cuban Forever, was chosen to emphasize the global nature of the artists included, reinforcing that the Cuban identity is not bounded by geography.

The exterior of the building includes several sitting areas to enjoy sculptures by Alexandre Arrechea, Tony Cragg, Tom Friedman, and Thomas Houseago, among others.

The Pizzuti Collection is the first phase completed in a larger project that includes a boutique art hotel, office building, and parking garage. It sits on Goodale Park, one of the oldest parks in the country, and connects the Pizzuti developments to High Street in Columbus’s arts district. The Pizzuti Collection is an additional gem in a city known for having one of the oldest regional museums in the United States, the Columbus Museum of Art, as well as the Wexner Center for the Arts, a leader in the arts nationwide, and a diverse artistic community based on the numerous universities and institutions around Ohio. The Collection will compliment these existing institutions with a strong program of contemporary art exhibitions, educational programs, and events, further enriching a vibrant community and attracting visitors from around the world.

The 18,000 square foot facility is located in a newly renovated limestone building that formerly served as the headquarters of United Commercial Travelers insurance company. The classic architecture has been preserved and enhanced to create three floors of exhibition space and a library. “The Pizzuti Collection is a marvelous addition to Columbus. The renovated historic building is a perfect space in a great area - the Short North, a walkable urban neighborhood full of independently owned restaurants and shops,” says Rebecca Ibel, Director of the Pizzuti Collection. “The cosmopolitan nature of the area and the Collection’s robust exhibitions encourage multiple visits - guests' experiences will be enhanced by returning to the collection time and again.”

A native of Kent, Ohio, Ron Pizzuti has served on the boards of The Columbus Museum of Art, the Wexner Center for the Arts, SITE Santa Fe, Madison Square Park, Columbus College of Art & Design, the Gund Gallery, Kenyon College, and the drawing committee of the Whitney Museum of Art. Ann Pizzuti also has a long history of community involvement and has served on numerous boards including the United Way, Hospice, and the Columbus Foundation. The Pizzuti Collection is regularly listed by ARTnews as one of the top 200 art collections in the world.

The Pizzuti Collection will be open after September 7th on Fridays and Saturdays from 10:00 am until 5:00 pm.