Our History

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In 1997, Medford artist Adele Travisano was inspired by art exhibited in the windows of businesses in Somerville’s Davis Square. She believed that Medford artists could do likewise. So, that summer in West Medford Square, local artists were assigned a place of business to display their artwork for the season. This tradition continued for the next few years and expanded to include Medford Square and parts of Haines Square.

In 2002, with artist Barbara Zeles as chairperson, we celebrated with a dance at Medford City Hall to kick off the summer season of the Doc Kountze Festival. Two bands played and it was a big success. Each year the number of artists grew in anticipation of this event. Meanwhile, Medford Arts and Artists had begun meeting informally on a monthly basis, with guest artists speaking about their work.

Meanwhile in 2000, The West Medford Open Studios formed a non-profit organization to display artwork in this close-knit neighborhood where homeowners, schools, and businesses would host an artist for the weekend. The concept was that people would visit, walk around, view, or buy art for sale by local artists. WMOS continues to be a wildly successful annual event, and in 2021 it was an outdoor festival held in Duggar Park, with many hundreds of artists, artisans, and attendees.

In 2003, Patty Saunders stepped in for Adele Travisano as chairperson of Medford Arts and Artists while also chairing the Doc Kountze Festival. This would be the last year of the window art displays for the art groups as recruiting volunteers became too difficult. The following year in 2004, Sharon Kennedy hosted an all-day event at the West Medford Congregational Church, calling it the “Seven Year Itch” for the Doc Kountze Festival. With music and entertainment all day long it was a big success.

While these activities were going on, a group of artists from West Medford Open Studios and Medford Arts and Artists were meeting to discuss the idea of converting one of Medford’s old schools into an arts and cultural center. Medford was in the process of replacing older elementary and middle schools with new schools and having some of the old school buildings sold and renovated for use as condos, etc. The “building committee” toured many of the schools in the city and finally determined that Swan School on the corner of Washington St. and Park St. was best suited for artist studio space and classrooms. Along with TV3, the group then started the long arduous task of forming a non- profit, creating a curriculum for teaching classes, and interviewing artists  interested in renting space.

In 2004, the artists lost their bid to obtain the building for an arts center. It was also the demise of Medford Arts and Artists, as many artists simply left the organization and moved on. But just as the legendary “ phoenix” rose from the ashes, a small dedicated group of people got together and the Medford Arts Center, Inc (MACI) to encourage and promote an appreciation of the arts in Medford and provide a way to support our community's artists.

Between 2011 and 2014, MACI ran the Mystic Art Gallery in Medford Square, which provided a funky space for artists to display and sell their work and hold receptions and other events. MACI was a founding member of the Medford Film Collaborative, which as programmed many films dealing with art and artistic inspiration.

In 2015 MACI moved into a large open storefront in the Meadow Glen Mall, where members displayed and sold their art and held public events. But less than a year later, the mall closed completely to allow Wegmans grocery stores to develop the property.

When COVID-19 locked us down in 2020, we turned on a dime and created a virtual program called Tuesdays with MARV (in Season 1) and Arts After Dark (in Season 2). 

Watch any of the videos of these events on our MARV YouTube channel. 

The 2021 Season featured:

• Elizabeth Campbell-Tompkins, macro-photographer
• Michelle Trammel: glass blower
• Rosemary Chimbganda: Demonstration of cornmeal porridge dying method called Sadza Batik
• Devin Ulibarri & Chie Yasuda: Simultaneous performance by a classical guitarist and watercolorist
• West Medford Open Studios: Preview of the upcoming festival, with artists Tanya and Earl Howard, Sheila Corkery, and David Chia 
• Janet Smith: Nature photographer
• Bill Morris and Dan Holabaugh: Guitarists
• Children's book giveaway: Several hundred books distributed to residents picking up food at the Mystic Community Market
• Gary Hawley: woodturner with decorative colorful amendments
• Jen Flores: Fiber and mixed media artist
• Meagan O'Brien: Condon Shell muralist
• Opera on Tap: Popular tunes and opera favorites, outdoors at Condon Shell
• Quanta Recorder Ensemble: Three recorder artists in concert
• Tufts University Artists: Three artists pursuing different disciplines, in conversation