The John & Mable Ringling Museum of Art and the State Art Museum of Florida administered by Florida State University (FSU) have revealed an ongoing $100 million comprehensive campaign to preserve and expand its legacy for the 21st century and beyond. The Ringling Inspires: Honoring the Legacy and Building for the Futurecampaign has raised $92 million to date. It is an integral component of Florida State University’s Raise the Torch campaign. 

The Ringling and Florida State leadership also announced a leadership gift of $5 million from the Monda family of Sarasota, to endow the Keith D. and Linda L. Monda Curator of Modern and Contemporary Art as well as an inspiring gift of artwork to the modern and contemporary permanent collection—Teo González’s mixed media Untitled #406 (2006), Yayoi Kusama’s monumental painting Infinity Dots (1993), Beverly Pepper’s steel sculpture Curve in Curve (2012) and a large work on paper by Richard Serra (1990).

 “The Ringling Inspires campaign is vital to our long-term commitment to engage and welcome diverse audiences to the museum, and increase access to the treasures found in our collections, while preserving the incredible heritage of The Ringling’s campus. As we celebrate our landmark architecture, both historic and new, and continue to invest in innovative programs to expand our service to more than 415,000 annual visitors, we broaden our international impact and strengthen our role as a cultural leader,” said Steven High, The Ringling’s executive director. “We thank all who have generously supported us throughout this major campaign, including Keith and Linda Monda, who through their impactful gifts have signaled their lasting investment in the Art of Our Time at The Ringling.”

This final phase of the campaign is concentrated on three key goals: the preservation and restoration of Ca’ d’Zan; supporting community engagement and public programs that focus on inclusion and building long-term relationships with at-risk and underserved audiences; and expanding the global impact of The Ringling’s collections and scholarship through strategic acquisitions and innovative training programs for future museum leaders.

Among the projects funded thus far through The Ringling Inspires campaign are the recently opened Center for Asian Art and the Kotler-Coville Glass Pavilion, the launch of the Art of Our Time initiative, the creation of the dynamic Keith D. and Linda L. Monda Gallery for Contemporary Art and more.