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2024 has been a year of extraordinary growth in which we supported artists and peer organizations through imaginative and joyful partnerships. We poured our resources, space, and energies into collaborations that catalyzed new ideas, community connections, and engaging works of art. Thank you for being with us during this time of transformation. Please support our year-end appeal, so that we can sustain our work. A record 613 artists applied to ECOCA’s annual open call; we prioritized sharing their work through as many channels as possible: exhibitions in our space, at national art fairs such as SPRING/BREAK, online, and at sister organizations. We are especially proud of the collaborations with the Mattatuck Museum, Florence Griswold Museum, and Lyman Allyn Museum, thanks to artist/curator Eric Litke, to jointly organize a set of exhibitions featuring artists who were part of the founding of the Ely Center—we hope you heard the feature about these joint shows on CT NPR! We served as a training site for Yale Art Gallery’s new Art Handler job training initiative. This program, which centers BIPOC residents of New Haven, will build a corps of local installation technicians that strengthens and diversifies the local arts sector. We were the exhibition partner for the International Festival of Arts & Ideas premiere of local artist Horacio Marquinez’ documentary, America Unfiltered. All the accompanying photographs which chronicled Horacio’s cross-country journey were presented at ECOCA, where we welcomed new audiences. We proudly absorbed the acclaimed Summer Arts Apprenticeship, a 25-yearold youth empowerment intensive serving New Haven Public Schools, into our programming to keep this popular program going. Several students have already been hired into paid mural painting gigs, and one has joined our staff! Out of doors, we partnered with New Haven Sketchers and Save the Sound to produce Long Water Land, a series of outdoor communal sketching dates up and down the Quinnipiac River to deepen our appreciation for the watershed as an invaluable regional asset. A gorgeous book was produced that brings together all the drawings. We joined forces with Creative Arts Workshop to create an Audubon Arts District cluster for New Haven Open Studios. Eight artists from ECOCA’s open call were granted access to workspaces and a complimentary class at CAW to develop new skills; another three artists moved into workspaces at ECOCA. We hope we can count on your support for the resources to sustain the energetic, generous, and imaginative care of our many artists. Please help us sustain this work and expand our impact. Thank you for your support. The Board of Ely Center of Contemporary Art Vesta Bortey-Fio Aimée Burg, Gallery Director Dan Burns Debbie Hesse Jamilah Irshad, Youth Board Helen Kauder Amy Kundrat Clara Nartey Denise Nelligan John O’Donnell Merlin Shallow, Youth Fellow Aaron Pine Kishwar Rizvi GIVE TODAY: elycenter.org/donate
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