The Wolfsonian–Florida International University uses objects to illustrate the persuasive power of art and design, to explore what it means to be modern, and to tell the story of social, political, and technological changes that have transformed our world. It encourages people to see the world in new ways, and to learn from the past as they shape the present and influence the future.

HISTORY
The Wolfsonian was founded in 1986 to exhibit, document, and preserve the Mitchell Wolfson, Jr. Collection of Decorative and Propaganda Arts, a vast assemblage of objects that includes furniture, paintings, books, prints, industrial and decorative art objects, and ephemera. In 1997 it became a division of Florida International University (FIU), when Wolfson donated his collection and museum facility to the university, the largest gift ever contributed to a public university in Florida.

The museum explores through its exhibitions and special programs the critically important role of design at the height of the industrial age (1885-1945) in the context of social, political, and technological issues.

From 1986 through 1993 museum staff were committed primarily to registering, cataloguing, conserving, and researching objects in the collection. They were stored in a 1927 Mediterranean Revival building, which in 1992 was renovated and enlarged for the new museum-a seven-story, 56,000-square-foot, state-of-the-art facility. Located at 1001 Washington Avenue, Miami Beach, this facility houses The Wolfsonian's auditorium and shop (first floor), administrative offices (second and fourth floors), library (third floor), small objects and paintings (fourth floor), and exhibition galleries (fifth through seventh floors). The Wolfsonian's conservation lab and remaining object collections are housed in The Annex, a 28,000-square-foot, historic warehouse, also located in South Beach.

The Wolfsonian's first exhibition opened in 1988 at Miami-Dade Community College. Stile Floreale: The Cult of Nature in Italian Design was guest-curated by Gabriel Weisberg; the accompanying catalogue was distributed by the University of Washington Press. In January 1993 The Wolfsonian opened a 1,000-square-foot preview exhibition in its Miami Beach facility, entitled Design 1880-1945: The Modern Idiom. The Wolfsonian's research division also was established that year; it continues to administer a competitive fellowship program, facilitates collections access, and plays a leading role in the Association of Research Institutes in Art History (whose members include the National Gallery of Art, the Getty Research Institute, and the Metropolitan Museum of Art (www.fiu.edu/~ariah ). Since its formation, The Wolfsonian's fellowship program has hosted scholars from North and South America, Europe, and Australia. The Wolfsonian's full-scale public dimension was officially inaugurated in November 1995 with the opening of the major touring exhibition The Arts of Reform and Persuasion, 1885-1945, which demonstrated the depth and breadth of the Wolfsonian collection and its concomitant themes. Featuring 256 objects from the permanent collection, this exhibition traveled to the leading art museums of Los Angeles, Seattle, Pittsburgh, and Indianapolis, garnering international recognition. Since then The Wolfsonian has organized temporary exhibitions, drawing from its permanent collection, and has hosted a number of borrowed shows, all of which provide insight into the role of design as an agent of reform and persuasion.

The Wolfsonian continues to present an array of public and academic programs intended to reach an audience as broad and varied as its collection. Exhibitions and programs are designed to provide the public with opportunities to identify and contemplate the historical significance of collection themes and their relevance to the world today. Ongoing public programming is extensive, including school activities, family events, lectures, films, symposia, and collaborative performing-arts activities.

WOLFSONIAN ADVISORY BOARD
The Wolfsonian's Advisory Board is appointed by the president of the university. The Board provides advice and consultation to the director of The Wolfsonian and the president of the university on matters pertaining to the museum, such as policies and practices, long-range planning, collections development, facilities use and expansion, and external interactions such as fundraising and membership development. The board has established bylaws, which govern its composition, meetings, voting, and committees. Recommendations of the board conform to rules and regulations of the State University System; the Gift Agreement between Mitchell Wolfson, Jr. and The Wolfsonian, Inc.; Florida International University and Florida International University Foundation, Inc.; and standards and practices of the American Association of Museums.

ACCREDITATION
The Wolfsonian-FIU was reaccredited in April 2006 by the American Association of Museums.