Opening Reception – Pelham Art Center: 50 Years
January 24, 2020
6:00 pm - 8:00 pm
Pelham Art Center’s semi-centennial historical exhibition opened Friday, January 24 with a free gallery reception. 130 guests attended the opening for the exhibition, which presents a visual timeline encompassing the origins of the Art Center as a local grassroots initiative, major organizational milestones, and art highlights from gallery shows over the years. Pelham Art Center welcomed Peggy Nicholson and Clue Noble, the Co-chairs of the original “Art Happening”— a two-day arts festival developed by Pelham Junior League volunteers as part of the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s centennial Project in Education. Diana Reische, Kathy Rutsch, Susan Nathenson, and Nancy Warner were among other key individuals in attendance, including past and current board members, board chairs, previous Executive Directors, art collectors, and artists who have exhibited at the Art Center. Westchester County Legislator Terry Clements, New York State Assemblywoman Amy Paulin and Pelham Mayor Chance Mullen were also there to support the exhibition opening. Justin Christopher of Handcrafted Catering & Events provided an artful arrangement of food for the evening.
With a community of art supporters together in the gallery, Pelham Art Center Executive Director Charlotte Mouquin remarked: “With our 50 year history of public engagement with art, we have exhibited thousands of artists; we have had hundreds of exhibitions. Learning this history has been truly inspirational…When we look back at the story of our past, we can consider where we are going in the future.”
Mouquin gave a special thank you to Pelham Art Center’s current annual sponsors Meridian Risk Management, Cincinnati Insurance Companies, and McClellan Sotheby’s Real Estate. She extended an invitation to join Pelham Art Center at its 50th Anniversary Legacy Gala on March 21st, saying “It’s really the time to envision: where do we want to be in the next 50 years, and how are we going to get there? It’s a time to celebrate this history of art and community engagement.”
Pelham Art Center presents “Pelham Art Center: 50 Years” (January 24-April 4, 2020), a historical gallery exhibition covering the fifty-year legacy of the organization as a grassroots non-profit and local arts institution. The exhibition is organized as a visual timeline encompassing the origins of the Art Center, its major milestones, and art highlights from gallery shows over the years. Viewers of all ages can explore five decades of archival materials, photographs, and art from private collections of individuals instrumental to the founding, success, and development of the Pelham Art Center. The timeline culminates in a reflection on the present-day Pelham Art Center, which now serves over 16,000 area residents.
Learn more about the exhibition here.