In honor of the Concord Free Public Library’s 150th anniversary, the Concord Museum and the Library have collaborated on a special exhibition featuring the Library’s art collection. Featured objects will include paintings by Washington Allston, N.C. Wyeth, May Alcott Nieriker, Charles Hovey Pepper, Alicia Keyes, and Elizabeth Wentworth Roberts, among other artists, as well as sculptures depicting noted Concord authors such as Nathaniel Hawthorne, Henry David Thoreau, and Louisa May Alcott.

When establishing the Library in 1873, founder William Munroe envisioned a combined library and art gallery, with the goal of creating a public space where Concord residents could experience art and culture. Munroe aimed to offer artists, donors, and visitors a “perpetual invitation” to explore and expand the Library’s art collection.

The original architectural plans for the Main Library included an art museum annex but the space was never built. This exhibition will be a unique opportunity for the public to view the Library’s collection in a single gallery space.

The exhibition will also highlight Concord’s artist communities, local art collectors, the history of institutions promoting public access to works of art, and the stories of specific artists, including May Alcott Nieriker, Alicia Keyes, Elizabeth Wentworth Roberts, and others who have lived and worked in Concord.

A variety of public programs exploring Concord’s art and history will be presented at both the Museum and the Concord Free Public Library. See the Calendar for program information.

A Perpetual Invitation: 150 Years of Art at the Concord Free Public Library will be on view at the Concord Museum from March 24 to September 4, 2023.

Image:  Elizabeth Wentworth Roberts, “Church at Annisquam,” William Munroe Special Collections at the Concord Free Public Library. Courtesy of the Concord Free Public Library Corporation.
Photographic image © 2020 James E. Coutré.

Sponsored by: Bonhams Skinner, Freedom’s Way National Heritage Area, and Middlesex Savings Bank