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Fifty years ago
in 1955, six artists, John McConell, Lucille Lipe, Verla Williford,
Leonard Ham, Lonnie Cox and Augustine Brown gathered together in the
basement of the war memorial building to paint and exchange ideas
with their fellow artists. They met to paint wherever
they could get the space. In 1957 the little group took a class taught by one
of the foremost artists of the state, Ralph Herring. As a result of
this class more artists joined the group.
On
November 17, 1966, numbering about 20 the group known as the
Mooresville Artist Guild was organized.
The Guild continued to increase in number and on March 6, 1978, the Mooresville
Town Board voted to allow the Mooresville Artist Guild to use the
town-owned Southern Railway Depot. The Guild became a
"quasi-municipal service" and has worked since that time to develop
the former Depot into a visual arts center for the area. Working
with the Town of Mooresville, members and supporters of the Guild
have remodeled the building to include heated and air conditioned
meeting rooms, rest rooms, and a gallery. The warehouse area is also
used for large exhibits.
The Guild also became associated with the
Iredell Arts Council and is supported in part by the Grassroots
Art Program of the
North Carolina Arts Council.
On May 24, 1982 the Guild was incorporated in North Carolina as a
non-profit corporation whose purpose is to provide art and art
appreciation for members and the general public.
In a ruling dated January 30, 1997 the Internal Revenue Service
determined the Mooresville Artist Guild is exempt from federal
income tax under section 501(a) of the Internal Revenue Code as an
organization described in section 501(c)(3) effective April 10,
1996. This means that gift contributions (including dues) are
deductable as provided in section 170 of the Internal Revenue Code.
MAG
Federal Id and IRS Status/Information
Currently membership and supporters number over 225 |
