Located on the eastern bank of the Hudson River, the former printing plant houses Dia's world-renowned but rarely seen collection of contemporary art. It actually comprises three buildings and a train shed cojoined into a single structure measuring nearly 300,000 square feet. Constructed in 1929 for Nabisco (National Biscuit Company), the printing plant was donated to Dia in 1999 by International Paper, its most recent owner.

The 240,000 square feet of gallery space, named the Riggio Galleries in recognition of the extraordinarily generous donations made to the new museum made by Leonard and Louise Riggio. As chairman of Dia's board of trustees since 1998, Mr. Riggio has led the organization through the process of creating the new museum.

Made of steel, concrete and glass, it is a model of early-twentieth-century industrial architecture, the elegant, functional design of which sometimes eclipses the minimalist art. Dia has maintained the character of the original structure, with its high ceilings, broad spans between supporting columns, and more than 34,000 square feet of skylights. The total project cost (including acquisitions and endowments was more than $50 million. It is located on 31 acres adjacent to 90 acres of riverfront parkland.

The artworks presented at Dia:Beacon range in date from the early 1960s to the present. In keeping with Dia Art Foundation's focus on in-depth presentations of individual artists' work, each gallery is devoted to a single artist, and is designed to fulfill the particular needs of the work it contains. A number of these installations have been created in collaboration with the artists themselves.

Presentations include works by Bernd and Hilla Becher, Joseph Beuys, Louise Bourgeois, John Chamberlain, Walter De Maria, Hanne Darboven, Dan Flavin, Michael Heizer, Robert Irwin, Donald Judd, On Kawara, Imi Knoebel, Sol LeWitt, Agnes Martin, Bruce Nauman, Blinky Palermo, Gerhard Richter, Robert Ryman, Fred Sandback, Richard Serra, Robert Smithson, Andy Warhol, Lawrence Weiner and Robert Whitman.

Paintings and works on paper are installed in the front of the museum, where the cool, even light from the north-facing skylights provides excellent viewing conditions. The perimeter galleries here provide ample spaces for the exhibition of sculptural works that benefit from the direct light offered by the large-scale factory windows.

The rear portion of the museum provides an architectural contrast to the front: Clerestory windows filter a changeable light, and the floor is concrete rather than wood, making this section of the museum ideal for the display of sculpture. In this area is one of the few sculptural changes that Dia made to the facility, raising the height of the roof in one gallery to create the best possible viewing conditions for a work by Judd comprising 15 plywood boxes.

A brief biography and description of the artists' works is provided in a box at the entrance of each of the galleries, and comfortable sofas allow for leisurely viewing -- or a rest after the long walks.

The original printing facility was designed by Nabisco staff architect Louis N. Wirshing, Jr. Dia's rehabilitation of the buildings and site took approximately two years to complete, and was carried out in collaboration with artist Robert Irwin and architect OpenOffice. The facility has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places by the New York Sate Office of Parks, Recreation, and Historic Preservation.

Irwin created a masterplan to integrate the new museum with its setting, including a design for the surrounding landscape and subtle alterations to the fabric of the structure. The entry to the grounds is marked by an orchard of flowering fruit trees selected by the artist for their variety over all four seasons that serves as a parking lot. A grass plaza leads visitors to the museum's entrance.

The artist's plan for the interior of the building complex defines two major axes that run north-south and east-west, affording clear avenues of orientation within the large structure of the museum An additional orienting feature in the interior is the natural brick that defines the perimeter of the museum: all other interior brick is painted white. Some of the facility's translucent window panes have been replaced with transparent ones, allowing momentary glimpses of the surrounding landscape.

A small two-story structure adjoining the gallery buildings provides space for a bookshop and café. The café seats 49, and its menu features light fare such as soup, sandwiches, salads, baked goods, fruit, coffee, tea and cold beverages, with an emphasis on local produce, dairy and baked goods.

The Dia Art Foundation has become internationally recognized as an influential art institution since it was founded by Heiner Friedrich and Philippa de Menil in 1974. The name "Dia," taken from the Greek word meaning "through," was chosen to suggest the institution's role in enabling extraordinary artistic projects that might not otherwise be realized.