Former Board Members Sweep in to Help Keep Bainbridge Arts and Crafts from Closing its Doors in December

The iconic Bainbridge Arts and Crafts (BAC) gallery on Winslow Way is going to live on for at least another day, if not beyond.

A group of former board members and staffers have banded together to breathe new life into the struggling 76-year-old nonprofit art gallery in Downtown Winslow, which has gone through some challenging financial times this past year or so.

Ellin Spenser (former BAC President), Susanne Lindsley (former treasurer), along with Susan Jackson, Janice Shaw and Kathleen Thorne (former staff members) are pulling together to try and keep the Island from losing “a valuable arts asset”. Also joining the board at this time around are Scott Allen and Elaine vonRosensteil.

Spenser, a longtime island resident and former real estate agent, has been elected President of the Board, while Lindsley, Shaw, and Thorne are the organization’s new officers. Jackson has been named Interim Executive Director. She retired from BAC in 2015 after serving for 13 years as Executive Director. At that time the organization was “financially solvent with a substantial endowment and it offered a wide variety of programs to the public including classes, exhibitions (not only in its gallery, but also in (area) medical facilities and offices) as well as (offering) an active art-rental program and scholarships,” Jackson noted in a press release. She replaces Debra Ruzinsky, who had served as the non-profit’s ED since being appointed in 2020.

BAC’s fortunes took a nosedive this past year when it began facing a financial crisis due to dwindling savings, low revenue and high overhead, according to a story in the Bainbridge Island Review, originally published last July and republished by The Island Wanderer in August of 2024.

BAC Bainbridge Arts and Crafts (bacart.org)  is the oldest visual arts organization on BI and one of the first in the state, noted The Review. Its gallery on Winslow Way exhibits up to 250 artists per year, but the majority of its work is outreach. BAC hosts more than 100 free workshops a year, offers a college scholarship for high school graduates going into the arts, supplements art supplies and resources for teachers, hosts professional artist talks and teach-ins, and offers awards for up-and-coming young artists.

Changing art buyer tastes and dwindling grant money have contributed to the gallery’s financial woes, according to The Review’s previous reporting. It was rumored that BAC was going to shutter its operation this month, but that’s not going to happen now, said Jackson and others.

“We couldn’t just stand by and let BAC die. It means a lot to us and to so many members of the community,” Spenser explained. “They’ve filled their homes with BAC Art, they’ve taken classes, their kids discovered the artist in themselves by participating in our annual student exhibitions,” she added.  “We’ve undertaken this challenge with a lot of history and experience, but artists, contributors, volunteers, and shoppers are what we really need to get BAC back on its feet. If we succeed, it will be because of this terrific community. And we believe it can be done!”

The public is encouraged to visit BAC (151 Winslow Way E) any day Mon- Sat 10 -6 and Sundays 11-5 and to join it on Friday, December 6 for “a very festive” First Friday Art Walk (5-8 pm). It’s unclear whether the new board plans to infuse additional capital into the gallery, or for how long it will remain open.

Photos courtesy of Bainbridge Arts & Crafts

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