Art League Rhode Island: A Nonprofit for Local Artists

To address that need, Art League Rhode Island (ALRI) was founded in 2000 by local artist Nancy Gaucher-Thomas and her colleague Mark Simmons to support Rhode Island artists. Both Gaucher-Thomas and Simmons were respected members of the arts community in Rhode Island and realized the need to foster communication among their peers, so they initially reached out to 42 artists to join together to create a platform for their work. 

The founding members of the ALRI included some of Rhode Island's most prominent artists which gave the nascent organization an aura of gravitas that earned the respect of the larger cultural community. Gaucher-Thomas served as President for six years, and since then, the organization has evolved. 

To meet its growing needs, the ALRI moved several times, finally finding a home at 80 Fountain Street in Pawtucket, Rhode Island in a turn of the century building among a coterie of over 100 artists’ studios and other cultural organizations. They maintain a renovated gallery space where they present a robust exhibition schedule of members' work and other collaborative or theme-based exhibitions.  

In a recent conversation with Art & Object, Clegg’s enthusiasm for life-long learning was apparent. “In 2004-2005, I decided to take a break and study transformation based on the principles of Thoreau.”

Thoreau’s philosophy focuses on examining how individuals can achieve personal growth and profound change through a deep connection with nature, embracing simplicity, self-reliance, and intentional living. His well-documented experiment at Walden Pond, where he sought to live in harmony with the natural world and challenge societal norms to discover a more authentic self, exemplifies these beliefs. 

Clegg said, “This experience led me away from a 'victim mindset,' which can be deadly for an artist, sapping energy that is needed to produce new work.”  Clegg is also a certified performance coach who believes, “We each have the power within us to create our own situation.”  

This world view has contributed to her personal success as an artist. Now, she offers training for ALRI artist-members on how they can better understand and move through life by directing their energy in positive and transformative ways.

Several membership options are available for artists of all media interested in joining this nonprofit organization. Each level of membership includes an annual fee, and members are expected to contribute their time to help run the organization. 

There are 52 artists currently listed as “elected members” on the ALRI website. A process of portfolio review by a five-member jury of three seasoned ALRI Elected Artists and two outside professionals, gallerists, or museum directors is required when applying to be an elected member. Details and an application form is available on the website. This jury changes annually. 

The work of elected artists is actively promoted through exhibitions and marketed with an online presence, like that offered on Art & Object. 

As a nonprofit, the ALRI has an obligation to serve the community beyond providing opportunities for their members. To that end, they are in their third year of collaborating with several local high schools to showcase student work at the ALRI gallery in the spring. They also sponsor a student scholarship fund. 

The Synergy Project is another collaboration, in this case one of art and science. Artists from the ALRI work with scientists from The University of Rhode Island’s Graduate School of Oceanography (URI GSO) on projects informed by research by the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI). The results are made public through an ongoing exhibition program.

The exhibition Art. Life. Design. The Way We Live is being presented in the ALRI gallery from November 23 through January 18, 2025. Two outside curators, Adria Polletta of Chilmark Design & Millwork and Joshua Cullion of Mott & Chace Sotheby’s International Realty, combined their professional expertise of showcasing art in a home environment as evidence that the art we live with can function as both inspiration and good design.

Given this ongoing productive exhibition schedule, there will be a lot to applaud when the ALRI celebrates its 25th anniversary in 2025.