Merced
California
Merced County Arts Council
The Arts Council’s mission is to inspire and nurture the arts in Merced County. We strive to show the community that art is around us all the time, and can be experienced in anything and everything. One does not have to be able to recognize the work of Manet or Mozart to know, value or benefit from the arts. Likewise, the ability to draw a perfect aesthetic is not the only right of passage to call oneself an artist. Because anyone drawn to the arts is a player in the arts scene, the arts are constantly changing. As staff, we push and pull in deliberative process to discern how that philosophy translates into action.
Incorporated in 1978, the Merced County Arts Council was originally operated from a small office space on Main Street. In 1996, the City of Merced entrusted the Arts Council to manage the Merced Multicultural Arts Center. In addition to operating this 28,000 sq. foot, multipurpose arts center, the Arts Council manages an arts-in-education program; an arts facility for adults with developmental disabilities; performances and visual/performing arts classes for children and adults; professional support for artists through fiscal sponsorship; exhibits of about 20 professional artists each year; and newfound coalitions for visual and performing artists.
Upcoming Events at Merced County Arts Council
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Recent News
Merced County Arts Council News - August 21, 2023
Inspiring and Nurturing the Arts in Merced County ONE NIGHT ONLY! Lewis Burns is a Tubba-Gah Wiradjuri man born and living in Dubbo, NSW, Australia. He has been sharing Australian Aboriginal cultural art, presentations, and performances for…
Read More »Merced County Arts Council News - August 9, 2023
This Friday and Saturday at 7:30. Free admission! "Cowboy Mouth" - When Patti Smith met Sam Shepard in the summer of 1970, their connection was authentic and electric. They quickly became inseparable, engaged in a tumultuous love affair, spending…
Read More »Merced County Arts Council News - June 18, 2023
We are more than thrilled to announce the grantees for the 2023 California Heartland Creative Corps, a partnership between administering agency Merced United Way and the Merced, Stanislaus, and Tuolumne county arts councils. Merced County saw 17…
Read More »Merced County Arts Council News - June 16, 2023
We are more than thrilled to announce the grantees for the 2023 California Heartland Creative Corps, a partnership between administering agency Merced United Way and the Merced, Stanislaus, and Tuolumne county arts councils. Merced County saw 17…
Read More »Merced County Arts Council News - May 16, 2023
Inspiring and Nurturing the Arts in Merced County “Community Spirit” Reception WHEN: May 20, 3:00pm - 5:00pm WHERE: The MAC | Main & Second Level Galleries WHAT: Artists and our community are invited to attend WHO: All are invited…
Read More »Merced County Arts Council -Presentations, Receptions, and Mardi Gras
Mother Patricia Morgan Saturday, January 28 at 1:00 pm. Free Storytelling is a product of culture and a creator of culture. Stories open the door for both connection and to a place of understanding. In essence, stories keep cultures alive.…
Read More »Merced County Arts Council - Happy New Year 2023
Happy New Year from all of us at the MAC! Wishing you all a very happy and prosperous New Year! See you again in 2023! - From all of us at the MAC and the Merced County Arts Council The MAC Galleries will reopen Wednesday, January 4th for the…
Read More »Merced County Arts Council: Happy Holidays and New Year from the MAC!
Happy Holidays and Happy New Year from all of us at the MAC! Whether you celebrate Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, or any other holiday, all of us here at the MAC wish you all happiness and joy this season! We look forward to seeing you in the…
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