Our History

          In the summer of 2012, a small group of Machias area artists came together to promote the arts in Washington County, Maine. The group numbered just six artists with passion and a few good ideas.
          In the following years, the group saw slow but steady growth, and by 2019 Machias Arts was flourishing with 20 members who were hosting community building events, shows, and sales. First Friday Art Nights were established in collaboration with the Machias Bay Chamber of Commerce, and musicians, dancers and farmers joined in. Wooden Adirondack chairs were painted by members and exhibited at businesses around town, then sold off to benefit the local food pantry.           The Machias Arts was set to be a vital, respected, and productive part of the Machias community. In 2020, however, Covid raged through Washington County and the artists stayed home, their patrons stayed home, and the Chamber of Commerce shut its doors. All went very quiet.

          Two years later, the group resurfaced, adding new members, and reconnecting with old; resuming and updating collaborations, and programs, and renaming the group to align more with our new holistic vision. The Machias Arts Council was born. Our signature First Friday Art Nights became the First Friday Art Walks, and relocated to Norman Nelson Park in the middle of town. In 2023, under the forward thinking leadership of past chairman, Tim Markley, we became a 501c(3) nonprofit organization, which enabled us to accept tax-deductible donations, and qualify for grants.
 
Collaborations followed: 
Art shows and sales at Machias Memorial High School,
A collaboration for public art with the University of Maine at Machias.
MAC partnered with Machias Bay Chamber Concerts to provide complimentary refreshments and show art for concert patrons.
Added a Creative Writer’s Group, and began our annual Flash Fiction writing contest that has culminated in the publication of two Halloween-themed books filled with stories created by local writers.
Partnered with Next Step Domestic Violence Project for their Art Night for a Cause 
Presented the ‘Haunted Happenings, a Spooktacular Evening’ at the Pellon Center as a contribution to the 2024 Harvest Dinner and Trunk or Treat.
Partnered with the Sunrise Economic Council to host an art salon at the Main Street Business Building.
         
In late 2024, the Machias Arts Council was awarded a $10,000 Maine Community Foundation grant to lease property in which to house a gallery, giftshop, and workshop space for the 2025 season.

Machias Arts Council Theatre (ACT) was established in 2024 and immediately launched two original plays under the direction of our new theatre director.
ACT also gathered packaged and canned goods for The Machias Food Bank, and garnered a sizable donation to the New England Muscular Dystrophy Association during their full scale production of Scroogeport in December.
Machias Act was awarded quite the inaugural boost with a $5000 theatre grant from the Maine Community Foundation.

2025 
          As we look forward to a new season of growth and community building programs, our leadership is really getting down to business… evaluating our strengths and areas of challenge, planning and refining our internal structures and goals, exploring strategies, and incorporating education that will enable us a more intentional kind of growth.
         
Our current activities include:

Our current fundraiser is a NYC Art Week Bus Trip, slated for June 19 - 25, 2025.

We have achieved our first outward reaching goal by finding and securing a physical space where we may begin serving our members and community in a more tangible manner. We have rented a facility at 277 Main Street, in Machias, and hope to have it spruced up and ready for action in late Spring.

We are building a business plan for the Machias Arts Center, Gallery, and Art Supply Shop that will encompass workshops, gallery and retail space, and community event space.

We have begun a mindful fundraising campaign strategy in order to meet the needs of our community outreach programs, and help fund our start up operations. carefully We have subscribed to several nonprofit-support organizations that offer free and reduced cost NPO educational resources and grant funding databases. 

Our website is being overhauled to make it more dynamic, intuitive, and back-of-the-house user friendly. We plan on incorporating an online gallery and gift shop that dues-paying members may opt to take advantage of.

Member and designer Alison Ross has created a new logo that has a more creative and colorful, Downeast aesthetic

We are revamping our social media performance plans and platforms.

We are actively seeking Arts and Community Building grant opportunities, and sharing through our social media.

We plan to meet with Machias town and Washington County officials to discuss collaborations and funding options.

Current Projects and Programs include:

In the meantime, The Machias Arts Council Theatre (ACT) will be producing four plays in 2025 (two original scripts), in three different venues (UMM, Milbridge, and Eastport) and offering Season Ticket packages.

MAC members have created an art program for inmates at Washington County Jail, which will launch later this year, and are having conversations to develop a program with the Downeast Correctional facility, in Machiasport.
         
We’ve begun working on collaborations with the Sunrise Senior College, and are developing a children’s Summer theater and art workshop programs.

We have initiated a conversation with Healthy Acadia of the Capital Area to discuss how we might integrate a Mental Health/Recovery and the Arts initiatives into our program planning in order to better address the current needs of our community.
 

 Plans for the Future-:

Creating a vibrant and accessible space where we may begin serving our members and community in a more tangible manner.

Consulting with a nonprofit expert in order to establish a proper executive board structure that can offer expert advice on financial, legal, and community development issues.

Developing new protocols to approach local businesses about sponsorships for specific events and programs designed to benefit the community.

Researching the traditional and current trends in community-centric giving in order to develop a local  volunteer and donor base. 


We will always be looking to our neighbors in Machias and the surrounding communities for ways to make life better, and hope that you will join us in our mission to offer The Arts For All,

MAC currently has more than 70 members who reflect all genres of the arts: two- and three-dimensional art, sculpture, fiber, wood crafts, pottery, the written word, murals, theater, music, and more. We look forward to the opportunity to better serve our community and our members, and so encourage questions, concerns, communication, and involvement.

We are planning for a future filled with accessibility, diversity, creativity, and inclusion.

The Machias Arts Council