DETROIT, MICHIGAN.- The Detroit Institute of Arts’ (DIA) exhibition program moves to the edge with the presentation of On the Edge: Contemporary Art from the DaimlerChrysler Collection, on view from October 29, 2003, through January 18, 2004.Drawn from the collection of DaimlerChrysler AG, the more than 100 works span media from minimalist paintings and sculpture to photography and video to installation art. The exhibition is presented in 11 thematic galleries, giving visitors the opportunity to explore art movements and subject matter from the 1950s until today.

Graham W. J. Beal, DIA director and On the Edge curator, worked directly with Dr. Renate Wiehager, DaimlerChrysler Collection curator, to highlight the powerful and diverse artwork acquired by the corporation. “I am absolutely thrilled that the Detroit Institute of Arts is presenting an extensive selection from the DaimlerChrysler Collection as our major fall exhibition,” said Beal. “We have focused on work of the last 40 years or so and given heavy emphasis on recent art to stress the unusually wide array of contemporary media—video and installation art, for example—that differentiates this corporate collection from so many others. The DaimlerChrysler Corporation Fund has given unparalleled support to our exhibition program over the years and it is wonderful to be able to present a fine array of modern art that demonstrates the company’s commitment to collecting work by living artists.”

The exhibition, which will travel to South Africa and Tokyo, features work by established and less well-known artists from Europe and the United States as well as Australia, Japan and South Africa. Artists represented include Robert Ryman, Richard Artschwager, Andy Warhol, Josef Albers, Kirsten Mosher and Doug Aitken (USA), Giulio Paolini (Italy), Daniel Buren (France), John Armleder and Sylvie Fleurie (Switzerland) and John Nixon (Australia).

The DaimlerChrysler Collection was founded in 1977 and reflects the most important developments in 20th-century abstraction, from concrete and constructive art to minimal and conceptual art. Since its inception, the collection has grown to 1,300 pieces by approximately 300 international artists, including commissions dealing with the theme of the car and the company’s activities by Andy Warhol and Robert Longo, plus about 30 large sculptures for public areas.

Thanks to the generous support of the DaimlerChrysler Corporation Fund, On the Edge: Contemporary Art from the DaimlerChrysler Collection is free with museum admission. Recommended admission is $4 for adults and $1 for children. The DIA’s free audio tour, ArtPhone, includes specific stops for On the Edge. Tour wands are available at the Woodward entrance. For further information, click on www.dia.org.

This exhibition has been organized by the DaimlerChrysler Collection and the Detroit Institute of Arts and is made possible by a generous grant from the DaimlerChrysler Corporation Fund, the Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs, and the City of Detroit. The DIA is located at 5200 Woodward Avenue in the University Cultural Center. Museum hours are Wednesday and Thursday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.; Friday, 10 a.m. to 9 p.m.; Saturday and Sunday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.