Chiang Mai Art Conversation

Organizational Structure
The CMU has appointed the Fine Arts Faculty to have an official responsibility of all works and procedures and make sure that it meets the requirements and objectives of the CMU Art Center. The Dean will appoint one of the Associate Deans for the CMU Art Center director; who will form a group of museum committee, which will be in charge of the entire museum management.

The Location and the building
The Art Center is located at the corner of Nimmanhemin road and Suthep road, facing to Nimmanhaemin road, opposite Ton Payom market. It is between the Major part of the CMU and the Medical Complex of the CMU. It is near to culture institutions, temple, and histirical city wall as well as art galleries. The museum is about 10 minutes from Chaing Mai airport. It is easily reached by car and public transportation.

History
Chiang Mai University Art Center (CMU Art Museum) is founded in 1998, with the governmental budget of 44,680,000 baht. The CMU Art center is Established in the north region with a purpose of being a center for exhibitions, performances, meetings and seminars and providing services to the community. Beside that it also supports art education of the Fine Arts Faculty. Moreover it intents to be a center of cooperation and collaboration among art and culture organizations and institutions, nationally and internationally, for the purpose of exchanging art and culture information, knowledge and experience. The CMU Art Museum is open officially on 19 January 1999.

Philosophy
The CMU Art Center is a contemporary art and culture institution, which provides academic services like alternative learning for art and culture. It promotes and preserves art and culture for their development of the Thai society as means for the aesthetic education of the general public.

Vision
The CMU Art Center determines to be an outstanding center of creating , encouraging, collecting services, contributions and cooperation of the contemporary art and culture of the Northern Thai community.

Aim
1. To support and implement the basic mission and teaching of the Fine Arts Faculty of the Chiang Mai University and that of other art institution in the northern region
2. To encourage creativity with respect to contemporary art and culture activities and products, as well as to initiate academic educational projects to develop culture and society
3. To preserve and collect; contemporary art and culture and to collect information in order to function as a database for culture research and investigation of The Thai society
4. To disseminate information on contemporary art and culture for purpose of study and research
5. To enable exchange of information on contemporary art and culture and promote regional, national and international collaboration in these fields.

The art center complex consists of 3 buildings; an exhibition building, a theater building and office building. The total space is about 5,200 m2, excluding outer pathway and inner court and the surrounding in total space of 10 rai.