Press
Arts & Cultural Alliance of Freeport announces new name, logo
The organization takes name Meetinghouse Arts to celebrate its home in downtown
The Board of Directors of Arts & Cultural Alliance of Freeport - the nonprofit organization founded in 2015 by local citizens to support artists, arts and culture in greater Freeport - announced that the organization will be exclusively using the name Meetinghouse Arts for all of its operations, including events at the gallery and performance venue located within the historic First Parish Church at 40 Main Street in downtown Freeport.
"This is well timed, as the gallery celebrates its one-year anniversary and the stage rounds out a full season of diverse offerings from local and regional performers," Meetinghouse Arts Executive Director Dana Legawiec said. "The name Meetinghouse Arts shapes the organization's identity as a center for the arts as well as the catalyzing energy that draws people together to celebrate and activate the arts and culture."
Marking this name change is a new logo, designed by Mali Welch of All Over It Maine, designed to signify "the passion, energy, and creativity inspired by the arts as well as the community's heritage and rich cultural assets," according to a press release.
A newly designed website, made possible through sponsorship from Bath Savings, will follow the name change and logo design, reflecting the organization's growth. The new website will provide access to the organization's offerings as well as a calendar of cultural activities throughout the area.
The Meetinghouse Arts mission is "to cultivate Greater Freeport as a vibrant center for arts and culture by fostering creative collaboration, expanding access to arts and cultural assets, and amplifying the arts and culture as powerful tools to create, strengthen, and connect community."
Meetinghouse Arts taps Suzanne Watson as its temporary executive director during the search
The Times Record
As a regular volunteer at Meetinghouse Arts, Watson is familiar with its programs and services. Her passion for the arts has been evident in her past involvement with the Studio Theater at the Chocolate Church Arts Center in Bath and as a consultant on board development at the Young People’s Theatre in Brunswick, where she also helped run a successful development campaign. A longtime resident of Freeport, she has served on the Project Review Board and the town Planning Board. She has worked in the fields of energy conservation and efficiency, and economic development. We are thrilled to have someone of Suzanne’s caliber and experience to lead us through this transition to new leadership,”said Nancy Salmon, president of the Meetinghouse Arts board.
Watson replaces Dana Legawiec, who is stepping down from her duties to return to her work as an independent theater artist, teaching artist and consultant. Meetinghouse Arts will perform a national search for Legawiec’s replacement
Announcement
Meetinghouse Arts recently announced the selection of Suzanne Watson as interim executive director, effective Oct 1.
Times Record Community Matters: Arts and Cultural Alliance of Freeport
Community Matters is a monthly series highlighting the great work local nonprofits are doing in our area. Proudly supported by Priority Real Estate Group and Rusty Lantern Market
Housed in a stunning historic church in the heart of Freeport, Meetinghouse Arts Gallery and Stage welcomes all to enjoy its wide choice of arts and cultural events and programs. Come engage in our many offerings: art shows and workshops, theater performances, concerts, dance, lectures, film, youth activities, history exhibits, and much more!
Meetinghouse Arts, at 40 Main St. in Freeport, is a project of the Arts & Cultural Alliance of Freeport (ACAF). ACAF is a non-profit community organization committed to enhancing and cultivating greater Freeport as a vibrant center for arts and culture.
Our gallery membership presents an eclectic and exciting range of work by both established and emerging artists from Maine. We strive to connect the work of the creative community in and around Freeport and envision Meetinghouse Arts gallery as an engaging center for the visual arts that both residents and visitors will return to again and again.
Gallery shows change every few weeks, so there’s always something new and fun to see. Since its opening in early November 2021, the Stage at Meetinghouse Arts has hosted both professional and community theater, lectures, stand-up comedy and improv, variety shows, music collaboratives, classes, concerts, the Bates Film Festival, and cross-media projects like this May's "Finding Parkinson's". A community-wide production of Thornton Wilder's classic "Our Town" is on tap for this fall. Presenters and performers could be your next-door neighbor, or someone known on national and international stages.
For more information, please visit the Gallery, the website, our Arts and Culture Alliance of Freeport Facebook page, or contact our Executive Director, Dana Legawiec at director@FreeportArtsandCulture.org.
The mission of ACAF is to cultivate Greater Freeport as a vibrant center for arts and culture by fostering creative collaboration, expanding access to arts and cultural assets, and amplifying the arts and culture as powerful tools to create, strengthen, and connect community.
On May 5th, the Meetinghouse ArtsGallery opens an exhibition of artist C. David Thomas, FINDING PARKINSON'S: Doing Battle With My Brain. Along with the exhibition, ACAF will host a public reception on Friday, May 6th from 5pm-7pm; dance artist and educator Jessie Laurita-Spanglet will lead an IMPROVment® movement workshop for the Parkinson's community on Thursday, May 12th from 2pm - 3pm; and on Saturday, May 14 at 2pm Dr. David H. Rose, a neuropsychologist and educator, will speak on the intersection of Parkinson's and the creative process. Thanks to a grant from the Maine Humanities Council, all events are free and open to the public.