Birmingham Museum of Art: As a real estate investment firm, you know a good investment when you see one, and you have chosen to invest in the Birmingham Museum of Art. In your opinion, what are the greatest returns on your investment as a Museum supporter?
William Dobbins: We are incredibly fortunate to have the BMA in Birmingham. There just aren’t many cities of our size (or even larger!) that have a museum of the BMA’s quality and scale. It’s really important that we support our city’s outstanding cultural institutions, of which Birmingham has several. These institutions provide educational opportunities, promote civic engagement, drive tourism, provide cultural bridges and many other benefits to our community. We’re proud to support the BMA.
BMA: What’s next for Dobbins Group?
WD: We have new developments underway in New Orleans and Birmingham. In 2019, we’ll also be announcing major new developments in Birmingham.
BMA: If you could meet any artist, living or dead, who would it be? What would you ask them?
WD: Filippo Brunelleschi, the Florentine architect, engineer, sculptor, and artist. He is credited for developing the linear perspective technique used by Renaissance and later artists. But, as a builder, I would ask him about his most famous work, the Duomo at the Florence Cathedral. In 1418, no one knew how to build a dome, even though the Cathedral had been under construction for over 100 years! Finally, a competition was held among Renaissance’s brightest minds to figure it out. Of course, Brunelleschi prevailed.