FREE ADMISSION
ROCKPORT CENTER FOR THE ARTS
204 S Austin Street
Rockport, Texas 78382
Open 6 days a week:
Tuesdays - Saturdays • 10a - 5p
Sundays • Noon - 4p
Closed Mondays
General Inquiries
info@rockportartcenter.com
Office: 361-729-5519
Welcome to The Rockport Center for the Arts
Rockport Center for the Arts hosts a wide variety of exhibits, special events, education workshops and classes for children and adults, performing arts, sculpture garden and much more. The Center is a hub for The Arts in the beautiful coastal Rockport Fulton area. After 48 years, The Center re-established operations at 106 S. Austin St. in the wake of devastation sustained to the original building from Hurricane Harvey. The new facility is open to the public from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Saturday and admission is free.
Our Mission
Rockport Center for the Arts' mission is to be the catalyst and epicenter for opportunities to explore the creative arts.
Our Vision
Rockport Center for the Arts continuing its legacy as one of the top ten coastal art colonies in the US, expanding during its next fifty years with an iconic, architecturally significant space and innovative cultural programs and initiatives that engage, teach and inspire students, artists, residents and visitors while spurring economic development and revitalization.
Rockport Art Association, Inc. is a tax-exempt charitable organization as established by Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954. It is a non-profit corporation organized under the laws of the State of Texas.
The Association does business as the Rockport Center for the Arts whose goal it is to be the focal point for art related activities in the community. This commitment is accomplished through art exhibits, educational activities, theater and musical performances, literary endeavors, culinary classes, and lectures. The purpose is to promote cultural enrichment and art education in the community as a whole and especially cultural tourism, by establishing Rockport and Rockport Center for the Arts as a major art destination for visitors.
HISTORY
Yesterday
began in the 19th century when informal groups of Rockport artists gathered to share their artistic interests. Later in the mid-20th century, artists like Simon Michael, John P. Cowan and Dalhart Windberg were painting and teaching in the area, pioneering the Texas Coast aesthetic.
By 1967, a larger group of artists had been attracted to the charming and quiet fishing and birding paradise of Rockport, and the need for a strong cooperative unit became apparent. An art guild was first formed, soon to be followed in 1969 by the establishment of a non-profit corporation and the first Rockport Art Festival. The dream of the founding members of the Rockport Art Association, Inc. was to have a place to exhibit their work, to offer art education, and to expand the cultural horizons of the community.
For fifteen years the association operated from various small, leased spaces across the community, including the gallery of Estelle Stair, considered one of Rockport's founding artists. Yet, numbers continued to grow along with their ambitious cause. In 1983 the Association, through a generous donation, acquired the historic (1890) Bruhl/O'Connor home and moved it to the budding museum district between Rockport Harbor and Aransas Bay. The building and the mindset behind it began to operate as the Rockport Center for the Arts, fulfilling an early mission to provide a center around which many art activities revolve. Exhibits were first housed in twin parlors and in an adjoining room of the home. Another room served as a classroom. The kitchen became a favorite gathering spot for artists. The setting was right to foster more growth, and it did.
Visit the Rockport Center for the Arts Sculpture Garden
FREE ADMISSION
