The Katerynoslav Scientific Society took the initiative to build the museum in 1906, and donations from artists, art collectors, the
Saint Petersburg Academy of Arts, the Museum of Antiquities of Katerynoslav Gubernia, and other organizations made the museum possible. Opening in honor of
Taras Shevchenko's 100th birthday in April 1914, the Katerynoslav City Art Museum intended to serve as an urban community education hub in addition to being a cultural institution. The city council purchased and restored the buildings on the grounds of the City Park (now
Lazar Hloba Park), to house the museum's inaugural exhibition the night before it opened. The site was further altered by other historical occurrences connected to the
First World War and the startling 1917–1921 period. It was housed on the second floor of Khrinnikov's residence from 1922 and 1936 (currently the hotel Ukraine). In 1937, the museum's number of operations and stock collection increased, so much so that it had to relocate to a four-story building on 21 Shevchenko Street, where it remains to this day. Owing to the museum's growing volume of operations and stock collection. Following Dnipropetrovsk's liberation from Nazi occupation, repairs were made to the museum's grounds. As a result, the museum was able to reopen in 1947 and start hosting events. The Dnipropetrovsk Art School moved into the building after the land surveying technical school disbanded at the beginning of the 1960s. By the middle of the 1970s, the art school and the art museum were working side by side. An accidental fire that started in August 1974 completely destroying the structure from the inside out. Because they were rescued in time, the museum's exhibits escaped damage, but other wooden structures and interfloor ceilings burnt. Major renovations carried out over the course of the following four years included a thorough redesign of the interior arrangement and the function of the building. The art school relocated, and the museum reopened its doors to tourists in July 1978. == Collections ==