During the pandemic, our local museums have done a great job keeping visitors safe, with social distancing, hand sanitizer and mask-wearing. However, the current surge is just too dangerous for comfort. This week, the Taft Museum of Art and Contemporary Arts Center followed the lead of the Cincinnati Art Museum, and are closed indefinitely. (The Art Museum hopes to reopen on Dec. 15.)
Here’s the Taft/CAC joint statement:
Jointly, the Contemporary Arts Center and the Taft Museum of Art have made the decision to temporarily close to the public, effective Saturday, December 12, 2020 in light of Governor Mike DeWine’s announcement on December 10.
As Ohio continues to reach an exceedingly high number of COVID-19 cases, DeWine has
requested that individuals stay home unless necessary: “The next three weeks will really be
the most important three weeks for all of us in this pandemic,” adding, “We cannot afford, on
the very eve of a safe and effective vaccination, to further overwhelm our hospitals and health
care providers with a holiday tsunami.”
We will continue to remain closed to the public until further guidance from health and government officials.
This was a difficult decision, made in support of our community’s health, and based on DeWine’s recommendations that residents should only leave the home if necessary.
We know our institutions are among the safest places in the Cincinnati region, and we are
voluntarily and temporarily closing our doors to the public in the interest of broader community
health outside our walls. We are pleased we had the chance to safely allow the community the
chance to see and experience art in person, and we look forward for the chance to do so
again. At this time, all in-person programming will be temporarily suspended, but virtual
programming and offers will continue.
The Contemporary Arts Center and the Taft Museum of Art will continue to share updates on
COVID-19 to inform our staff, volunteers, and visitors of effects to operations and safety on
their respective websites: contemporaryartscenter.org and taftmuseum.org.
janellesnotes 