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SDMA Timeline
1915 Panama-California Exposition opens in Balboa Park. Exhibitions held at the fine arts building at the north end of the Prado influence cultural leaders to consider building a community art collection.
1922 Appleton S. Bridges, businessman and community leader, agrees to fund the construction of a new art museum provided a proper site is found and management could be arranged to operate it. William Templeton Johnson is hired to design and construct the new building.
1924 Construction begins in the spring.
1925 The San Diego Art Guild and the Friends of Art merge to form the Fine Arts Society to manage and operate the Fine Arts Gallery of San Diego. Dr. Reginald Poland is hired as the director.
1926 On February 28 the Museum officially opens its doors. Ownership of the building is turned over to the City of San Diego.
1935 The name of the Fine Arts Gallery is temporarily changed to the San Diego Palace of Fine Arts during the California-Pacific International Exposition held in Balboa Park through September 1936.
1940s The collection is greatly augmented by donations of old master paintings by Anne R. and Amy Putnam including works by Giorgione, El Greco, Cotán, Rubens, Zurburán, and Hals.
1943-1947 The Museum is closed in order to serve as a hospital ward for the United States Navy.
1966 The west wing is opened, doubling the building's original space.
1974 The new east wing opens.
1978 Trustees change the name of the Fine Arts Gallery of San Diego to the San Diego Museum of Art.
1982 Inaugural year for the Museum's annual fund raising event Art Alive.
1988 Baldwin M. Baldwin Foundation gift of art works by Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec.
1989 The Fabergé Eggs exhibition sets all time attendance records for a special exhibition.
1990 A 1,400 piece collection of South Asian art is donated by Edwin Binney 3rd.
1991 A collection of contemporary California art is donated by the Frederick R. Weisman Foundation.
1994 The Interactive Multi-Media Art Gallery Explorer (IMAGE) opens.
1999 A bequest by Mr. and Mrs. Rea Axline increases the endowment by over 30 million dollars.
2000 Major conservation and renovation work throughout the Museum is fully underway.
2001 The Museum celebrates its 75th anniversary on February 28 while a new gallery dedicated to displaying pieces from the collection of Edwin Binney 3rd officially opens.