By Marilyn Bauer
The Cincinnati Enquirer

Richard and Lois Rosenthal Enquirer file

Lois and Richard Rosenthal, Cincinnati philanthropists and art lovers, have given the Cincinnati Art Museum a gift of $2.15 million so admission to the museum will be free forever. It is one of the largest gifts the museum has received in its 121-year history.

"We believe in removing barriers and creating an atmosphere where art is available to everyone," said Mrs. Rosenthal. "Making the museum free, signals everyone is welcome."

Starting May 17, 2003, with the unveiling of the museum's new Cincinnati wing, anyone can visit the museum as often as they like. Special exhibitions will continue to require an $8-$12 admission fee.

"It's something Dick and I wanted to do for a long time," Mrs. Rosenthal said Tuesday. "We deeply believe in it."

The Rosenthals' philosophy of giving focuses on providing art for all. Through the Lois and Richard Rosenthal Foundation, they have given $6 million toward building the new Rosenthal Center for Contemporary Art; have privately funded Uptown Arts, a school of the arts for urban kids; and given to numerous other organizations and individuals.

"Our foundation is committed to fostering social change in Cincinnati," said Mr. Rosenthal. "And we feel this donation will certainly do that for the museum and our city."

Thanks to an endowment established in 1907 by Mary Emery, the museum has long been open and free of charge on Saturdays. A more recent gift from Cincinnati Financial Corp. allowed the museum to let children in free. The impact of free admission is unknown, but following the completion of its long-range plan, the museum conducted research on several major U.S. museums that offer free admission. The results were encouraging.

When a group from the museum traveled to Minneapolis to meet with representatives of the Minneapolis Institute of Art, they found the museum experienced significant increases in attendance, membership, annual fund and major gifts.

"We studied the best practices across the country to determine how to improve access to the museum and enhance the sense of community ownership," said Timothy Rub, Cincinnati Art Museum director. "What we found is that free admission is an important first step, but it must also be accompanied by strong programming and a dedicated effort to reach out to the community."

The museum makes about $100,000 annually from admissions. The Rosenthals' gift will help to defray that loss, as will the anticipated increase in memberships. The gift is a permanent endowment and a financial resource that will continue to generate income for the museum.

"Dick and I both have a long history with the museum," Mrs. Rosenthal said.

"It was important to me as a child," said Mr. Rosenthal. "I was taken there by my mother on Saturday mornings for art class. It thrilled me to be part of this magical world. Now to be able to give any part of that experience to anyone, especially children, is very exciting to Lois and me."