About photo by Chad Hughes
The DCCA at 35,000 sq. ft., houses seven galleries, 26 artists' studios, a gift shop, high-tech auditorium, and a classroom. On the rejuvenated Wilmington Riverfront, DCCA presents over thirty exhibitions annually of regionally, nationally and internationally recognized artists.
Artist studios range from 250 sq. ft. to 550 sq. ft., with most studios averaging 275 sq. ft. To inquire about renting an artist studio, please contact Helen Page at 302.656.6466 x 7107. Currently there is a short waiting list for studios.
Exhibitions: Our three main galleries (Carole Bieber / Marc Ham, DuPont I & II) present curated, thematic group and solo shows of national and regional work in all media that explore topical issues in contemporary art and society.
The E. Avery Draper Showcase presents solo exhibitions of contemporary crafts from nationally known artists.
The Constance S. & Robert J. Hennessy Project Space presents solo installations of more experimental work as well as documentation of community outreach projects.
The Beckler Family Members' Gallery presents solo exhibitions of DCCA artist members' work.
The Elizabeth Denison Hatch Gallery exhibits work of the 26 artists who lease studios on-site from the DCCA.
Educational Programs: Contemporary Connections is a model program that integrates contemporary artists and works of art into the public school core curriculum. Artists work with teachers on two-month projects to link art with subjects such as math, science and social studies. The DCCA runs an Artist-In-Residence program. This program enables artists to create a new work through collaboration with under-served community groups. Previous collaborators include shelters for the homeless, abused women and children, AIDS/HIV-positive individuals, inner-city neighborhoods and community centers, the YWCA, Girls Inc., and Boys and Girls Clubs, among others. Symposia are panel discussions with guest speakers that focus on current exhibitions, residencies, programs, and issues in contemporary society. Gallery talks are led by the staff and artists to provide insight into current exhibitions.
Artists' Services: In addition to leasing 26 studios to area artists, the DCCA sponsors critiques, workshops, and exhibition opportunities for artists.
Mission Statement:
A Forum for New Ideas and New Art
The Delaware Center for the Contemporary Arts is a non-collecting art museum dedicated to the advancement of contemporary art. Our mission is to present exhibitions, offer exposure to the creative process, provide educational opportunities and extend innovative programs to a diverse community.
The DCCA is located on the corner of South Madison and West streets, a few
blocks before Frawley Stadium. DCCA is on DART Route 32 (the Wilmington
Trolley) and is just 4 blocks from the Wilmington Amtrak and SEPTA Train
Station.
Hours:
CLOSED: MONDAY
Tue, Thu, Fri, Sat: 10 am - 5 pm
Wed & Sun: 12 pm - 5 pm
Admission:
$5; $3 for seniors (65 and up) and students; children under 12 free. Also, free Saturday from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.; Wednesday, no admission, but visitors are asked to donate whatever theyd like.
Plan a Group Visit to the DCCA:
Arrange to have your school or organization visit the DCCA. Groups can choose either to view the galleries on their own or to have a guided tour. During a guided tour, visitors can choose to visit the DCCA on-site artist studios and/or to partake in a hands-on art project. The DCCA education staff is eager to work with you to customize a tour experience for your group. A small fee applies for guided tours. Contact Holly Bennett at 302.656.6466 x7101.
For more information on group visits to the DCCA click here.
To request a tour date click here.
Directions (Click here for map):
From North/Philadelphia
I-95 South to exit 6. Ramp becomes Jackson Street. Take Jackson Street (3-lights) to Martin Luther Kind Blvd. (Follow Riverfront Signs) Left on MLK Blvd. Go to third traffic light. Turn right onto Madison Street. DCCA is on the left (after railroad underpass), at the intersection of Madison and West Streets. Turn left onto West Street. Go half a block. Turn left into the DCCA parking area.
From South / Baltimore
Take North I-95 to EXIT ..6. (Follow Riverfront Signs) right at end of ramp on Maryland Ave. Right onto Martin Luther King Blvd. Right immediately onto Madison Street. DCCA on left (after railroad underpass), at the intersection of Madison and West Streets. Turn left onto West Street. Go half a block. Turn left into the DCCA parking area.
From Del. Memorial Bridge / New Jersey / New York
From New Jersey take I-295 across the Delaware Memorial Bridge-Take I-295 toward I-95 Wilmington. Take I-95 Exit on right. Merge onto I-95 via exit into left lane. Take North I-95 to Exit ..6. (Follow Riverfront Signs) Right at end of ramp on Maryland Street. Right onto Martin Luther King Blvd. Right immediately onto Madison Avenue. DCCA on left (just after railroad underpass), at the intersection of Madison and West Streets. Turn left onto West Street. Go half a block. Turn left into the DCCA parking area.
From RT.52/Pennsylvania Ave.
From Route 52-Pennsylvania Avenue turn right onto entrance to I-95 (on the corner Delaware Childrens Theatre Company). Go down ramp and stay on ramp to exit ..6. Ramp becomes Jackson Street. Take Jackson Street (3-lights) to MLK Blvd. (Follow Riverfront Signs) Left on MLK Blvd. Go to third traffic light. Turn right onto Madison Street. DCCA is on the left (after railroad underpass), at the intersection of Madison and West Streets. Turn left onto West Street. Go half a block. Turn left into the DCCA parking area.
Taking Taxi from Wilmington Train Station
Exit at the backside of train station parking lot to Market Street (Route ..13). Cross Market Street (Landmark:ING DIRECT Bank) to Water Street past the Delaware Theatre Company. Stop at intersection of Water and West Streets. Turn left onto West St. Follow West around bend. Turn right into the DCCA parking area.
Featured Exhibitions
Paul DeMarco
Earthly Delights, 2006
Mixed Media
96 x 69 x 72 inches
MFA Biennial
May 18 - September 9, 2007
The DCCA is pleased to present this exhibition of work created by current regional Masters of Fine Arts students. The Masters of Fine Arts is the terminal degree for artists and it is the credential necessary to teach at the university level. The majority of professional artists working today study at the graduate level, most earning this degree, something unheard of just fifty years ago. This exhibition, juried by the curatorial staff of the DCCA, reflects the breadth and depth of work being created in graduate level visual arts programs throughout the region in a variety of media. The show also allows our visitors to see the future of the art world through the work of these students.
American University
H. David Waddell
The George Washington University
Sara Hubbs
Diane F. Ramos
Maryland Institute, College of Art
Becky Alprin
Andrew Buckland
Eileen Cubbage
Jacob Fossum
Meaghan Harrison
Rachel Schmidt
Ben Steele
Dominic Terlizzi
Towson University
Dan Keplinger
Gray Lyons
Tyler School of Art, Temple University
Natasha Bowdoin
RJ Gallardo
Laura M. Haight
Chad States
Jacquelyn Strycker
The University of the Arts
Paul DeMarco
Sun Young Kang
Stephanie Stump
Tom Wagner
University of Delaware
Ronald J. Longsdorf
Kyla Zoe Luedtke
Teresa Mikulan
Virginia Commonwealth University
John Henry Blatter and Derek Coté
Anthony Cioe
Brooke Inman
Carmen McLeod
Valerie Molnar
Josh Rodenberg
James Sham
Nanda Soderberg
Erin Colleen Williams
Hyun Kyung Yoon
Other Exhibitions
Michael Aurbach
The Administrator, 2001
Mixed media installation
8 x 18 x 12 feet
Michael Aurbach
The Administrator
June 27 - September 23, 2007
Michael Aurbach, a professor of art at Vanderbilt University, has created this installation entitled The Administrator. The piece is from his Secrecy Series, a body of work which serves as biting commentary about contemporary academia and institutional secrecy. The artist uses satire and caustic wit to challenge those in positions of authority.
This exhibition is for all viewers who love art, but also for those who enjoy pointed observations about the abuse of power.
Aurbach lives in Nashville, TN and holds several degrees from the University of Kansas as well as an MFA in sculpture from Southern Methodist University. His work has been shown at many important venues throughout the United States and he has received many honors, including grants and fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts, the Southern Arts Federation, and the Tennessee Arts Commission. He is a recent past president of the College Art Association.
Phillia Yi
Blue Tether II, 2006
Color Woodcut
42” x 60”
Phillia Yi: Contemporary Woodcuts
April 18 - August 5, 2007
Phillia Changhi Yi, a Korean-American, creates large-scale woodcut prints that meld the East and the West. She lives and works in New York State, but she has not left behind the subject of nature and landscape that informs much of the imagery of traditional Asian painting and printmaking. She creates completely abstract compositions replete with organic forms that allude to the powerful forces of nature, to the wind and the water. Her technical virtuosity is dazzling and the scale of her prints combined with their expressionist forms provides a dramatic and contemporary voice. Through her combination of ancient technique—the wood cut—and modern expressionist forms—nature—Yi turns the gallery into a lively garden replete with water and wind effects.
Phillia Changhi Yi (Geneva, NY) holds a BFA from the State University of New York College at New Paltz and an MFA from Tyler School of Art. She has shown her work extensively through the country and has received a number of awards, including a Fulbrigh Senior Research Scholar Grant to Korea. Currently, she is a professor at Hobart and Williams and Smith Colleges.
Dale Shuffler
Untitled, 2004
Stoneware and glaze
16 x 8 x 6 inches
Dale Shuffler
Symbiosis
July 18 to November 4
The inspiration for Dale Shuffler’s sculptures is the interconnectedness of the natural world. Shuffler rearranges and recombines shapes, patterns, and forms found in plant, insects and flowers, aspects that he calls “entia” or "abstract beings” to form something new. He believes that we are all interconnected by the web of life, in which life forms rely on one another for survival and reproduction. He explains that his thoughts on this matter evolved from his own life experience: “I moved from the city over twenty years ago to a semi-rural location to reduce the distractions of life. That move slowly refocused my attention on the life around me and reestablished a relationship with the seasons and the rhythm of life, forms emerging from the ground, the skeletons of dry leaves, but most of all the interaction of insects and plants."
Dale Shuffler (Spring City, PA) holds a BFA from the Philadelphia College of Art and an MFA from the University of Pennsylvania. He has shown his work both nationally and internationally, including a 25 Year Retrospective in 2006. Currently, he is a professor at West Chester University.
Felise Luchansky
Waxing and Waning, 2007
Archival ink jet print
DCCA Studio Artists
A community of artists, a collaborative experience—an opportunity for dialogue—26 on-site artists studios enhance the exhibition space at the DCCA. While these studios are normally accessible to the public by appointment only, during the Art On The Town loop nights, their doors are open from 5–9 pm. Meet the artists, discuss contemporary issues, learn new techniques, and purchase your favorite pieces.
Exhibition Schedule
May 30-Jul 1
Jane Quartarone, Ron Ranftle, Ruth Sklut
Jul 4-29
Delainey Barclay, Felise Luchansky, Scott McClurg, Grete Steen, Graham Dougherty, Seonglan Kim Boyce, Anne Oldach, Lynda Johnson
August
Greg Barkley, Ken Mabrey
September
Ron Ranftle, Tom Delporte
October
Dolores Cowan, Delainey Barkley
November
Lynda Johnson, Graham Dougherty, Ann Oldach
December
Linda Parks, Grete Steen
January 2008
Linda Celestian, Felise Luchansky
February
Karen Frazer, Studio 2R
March
Scoot McClurg, Chris Malcolmson
April
Kras Gorin, Michele Madeksza
May
Ruth Skult, Jane Quartarone Platz
June
Erin McNichol, Deb McClintock
July
Seong Boyce, Verna Hart