CAPITAL CAMPAIGN

June 19, 2017: The Woolley Gallery is the first of three galleries to get renovated! The Woolley, Wilson and Whiting Galleries are all getting new ceiling tiles, insulation and lighting. We can’t wait to see the final product!

Our Art Center has served us so well over the past 50 years, but now it is time for us to face some serious and long overdue facility issues. We’re embarking on a $500,000 capital campaign to address the necessary improvements to our facility!

• Bring mechanical, electrical and other systems up to peak efficiency
• Create a stunning entrance and facade befitting the Art Center
• Provide greater access for handicapped members of the community
• Improve the Art Center’s layout for better flow through the galleries
• Address health, safety, and comfort issues in the galleries and classrooms

The Eastern Shore Art Association was founded in 1954 by a group of local artists and art patrons who recognized the importance of art to a meaningful and full community life. Construction began that same year on a one room gallery on the site of the former Pinewood Pottery Studio that had operated in Fairhope for over twenty years making functional ceramics from local clay.

The Art Center has continued to grow in the same location over the past 60 years to a facility that houses five exhibit galleries and four teaching studios. ESAC now includes among its activities monthly exhibits; quarterly classes for adults and children; an annual outdoor show; monthly Art Walks; outreach programs for assisted living residents and children and adults with disabilities and chronic illnesses; and extensive programs for both public art and arts education in local schools.

Among other improvements, we will use the funds from this campaign to:

• Replace our inadequate heating and cooling systems with an energy efficient HVAC system that will insure the necessary humidity level required for an art gallery
• Contruct an exciting new entrance that will include a beautifully landscaped plaza, creating an area for public events and off-street handicap parking
• Update the lighting and acoustics in the galleries to display our exhibits in the best way possible
• Upgrade our security system to include surveillance and smoke detection, which is necessary to bring the facility up to code

Donate, donate, donate! The Fairhope Single Tax Corporation has pledged their support in the form of a $200,000 matching grant. Plus, the ESAC board and other benefactors have already generously donated over $60,000 towards this project! Click the button below, select one of the donations in the Donation Shop, or call 928-2228 ext. 100 to give to the campaign!

Some people assume that the Art Center is owned and maintained by the City, but is is not. For more than 50 years ESAC has been the epicenter for the arts on the Eastern Shore through grant funding, contributions, memberships, and fundraising activities. The facility is owned by the Association and governed by its volunteer board of directors.

You can show your support for the Art Center and all of its programs; first through membership, and then by making a contribution to the Capital Campaign – a contribution will be matched by the Fairhope Single Tax Corporation dollar for dollar.

ESAC has established the following naming opportunities for major contributors. This is a chance to receive ongoing recognition for your financial support of the Art Center, or to publicly honor a family member. Options include:

• Courtyard Gallery (lower level exhibit space) $250,000     Claimed!
• Front plaza $100,000
• Front entrance pavilion $50,000
• Studio $25,000                                                                          1 Claimed, 2 Remaining!
• Pottery studio ventilation system $5,000
• Handicap parking area $5,000                                                Claimed!
• Outdoor benches $5,000/bench                                            1 Claimed!
• Gallery benches $3,000/bench                                              1 Claimed!

Thank you for your faith in and support of the Eastern Shore Art Center, and thank you for any contributions you may make. We’re so excited about this project and hope you are too!