Dallas Arts District

The Dallas Arts District is an area for the visual and performing arts. The district currently covers 68 acres and has many prominent landmarks, museums, art galleries and historical buildings. The Dallas Arts District is also the largest urban arts district in the United States. Galleries and museums like the Crow Collection of Asian Art, the Dallas Museum of Art, and the Morton H. Meyerson Symphony Center offer a varied and diverse experience for art connoisseurs. The area is also home to the Dallas Center for the Performing Arts and smaller galleries.

Some of the buildings in the district have been awarded the prestigious Pritzer Prize because of their amazing architecture. Famous architects such as I.M. Pei, Norman Foster, and Rem Koolhaas have all contributed their designs to the area to give it a modern, classic, and creative ambiance. The city's most contemporary architecture can easily be found in the Dallas Arts District.

The arts district has been developing into more of a cultural enclave in Dallas over the years with ongoing construction in the area to provide more landmarks and facilities. In 2008, the city of Dallas began to focus on completing construction in the area with a final institution called the City Performance Hall. Dallas hopes that it will be the final addition to the district in 2010. The Dallas Arts District began to pump financial liquidity into the city of Dallas during the 1980's and is maturing slowly over the years.

The area is overflowing with institutions that seek to inform the Dallas public about cultural endeavors and promote the embrace of artistic education. One such educational endeavor in the Dallas Arts District is the prestigious Booker T. Washington High School. The magnet school is located in a brand new $55 million dollar facility in the Dallas Arts District. The school takes a special interest in students who are captivated by performing and visual arts.

Dallas Arts District provides a clash of culture and arts with places like the Black Dance Theatre. The theatre creates contemporary modern dance and offers educational programs that are meant to bridge cultural gaps. The Black Dance Theatre is one of many facilities in the Dallas Arts District that has a historical aspect; it is the oldest continuously operating dance company in Dallas. The dancers at the theatre company perform modern, jazz, spiritual, and ethnic pieces in their shows.

Unfortunately, the downside to the area is that the Dallas Arts District only caters to those interested in art. Restaurants and shopping are not prominent fixtures in the area. The arts district only has a bustle of activity when events or shows are taking place. Numerous art organizations and locals would like to change that aspect of the district. The area is used as a place where artistic organizations promote their work and an influx of restaurants and shopping opportunities would help to bring more people to the area during seasons where events are not as frequent.