A Brief History:

Archway Gallery opened for business on April 1, 1976. It was the creation of a group of artists that had decided the time was right to take artistic control of the process of selling art. Archway’s first location was in the C.G. Jung Center at 5200 Montrose, which had a 600 sq-ft gallery space. The gallery’s name was derived from the arches in this space. From the start, Archway was conceived as an artist-owned gallery – it would be owned and operated by the artists who would take complete responsibility for the operation of the business. New members would buy shares in the business. (The original members also had to buy a track light head as part of the agreement!) Initially, Archway had 11 members: Elaine Adams, June Adler, Judy Bush, Mary Bush, Joan Calabro, Dorothy English, Joyce Gould, Janet Hassinger, Marianne Hornbuckle, Stephanie Nadolski, and John Zanders.

Its first mission statement: "Archway Gallery is a partnership of regionally and nationally recognized professional artists. The gallery concept evolved in order to provide a showplace for these talented members to exhibit their work and to insure artistic freedom and individual control of quality and content. These artists are committed to promoting art with the community and to educating the public and an understanding and sharing of aesthetic ideals and purposes."