Dynamic Art at the Lighthouse ArtCenter

The wait is over: This month, Lighthouse ArtCenter unveils a renovated gallery and a new 2D studio. Work began in the fall to update both the gallery space and the school facilities. “The Lighthouse ArtCenter has been home to a creative, engaged, and enthusiastic arts community for more than 50 years,” says curator Janeen Mason. “Our recent renovations will allow us to provide meaningful experiences through vibrant art exhibitions, classes, and workshops for the next 50 years.”

The 7,500-square-foot gallery and studio contain three new classroom studios, a 3,200-square-foot modernized exhibition space, a refreshed gift shop and art supply store, and upgraded staff and public areas. The center also plans to complete a second-floor expansion in the future. The renovations were possible thanks to the generosity of many. The Cornelia T. Bailey Foundation donated $300,000 to help cover the cost of modernizing the gallery and facilities, while an anonymous donor pledged a $200,000 dollar-for-dollar matching gift.

Don’t miss these events at the Lighthouse ArtCenter this month:

A new exhibition, Soul on Art: Ghosts of Africa (January 26 to March 10), features thought-provoking and evocative artwork inspired by the personal experiences and cultural heritages of prominent artists including Leonardo Drew, William Kwamena-Poh, and Kara Walker.

January 15-17, the center hosts its signature fundraiser, D’Art for Art—a Whole New Adventure in 2021, featuring stunning artwork, jewelry, artisan home decor, and more donated by artists and collectors. This year, the event ($500/person) will take place over two days, with groups of 10 allowed in at a time during predetermined time slots. As guests arrive, they will be assigned an artist’s name. After mingling and cocktails, an announcer will call out each artist’s name one at a time as guests who were assigned that artist “dart” to pick out one of the artist’s pieces to take home.

On January 26, the Radical Jewelry Makeover takes center stage, with one-of-a-kind pieces on exhibition and available for purchase. The project is an innovative community mining project run by Ethical Metalsmiths, where artists create new pieces from donated jewelry, which they reconstruct into wearable works of art. The exhibition runs through March 20.