Mount Dora Center for the Arts

Mount Dora Center for the Arts
Location within Florida
Established 1985[1]
Location 138 East Fifth Avenue
Mount Dora, Florida
Coordinates 28°48′02″N 81°38′38″W / 28.80053°N 81.64391°W / 28.80053; -81.64391
Type Art museum[2]
Director Nancy Zinkofsky, Executive Co-Chair
Beth Miller, Executive Co-Chair
Website Mount Dora Center for the Arts

The Mount Dora Center for the Arts is located at 138 East Fifth Avenue, Mount Dora, Florida. MDCA is a multifaceted community center providing fine art gallery exhibitions, education programs for all ages and levels, Art of the Deal (an annual fine art auction), monthly Art Strolls and a multitude of volunteer opportunities for all ages. The Mount Dora Center for the Arts also presents an Arts Festival every February. This celebrated art show brings together nearly 300 nationally acclaimed artists to beautiful historic downtown Mount Dora for a weekend-long arts experience. Mount Dora Center for the Arts is a community based, nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to fostering an appreciation of art and culture in the Central Florida region.

Mission Statement

The Mount Dora Center for the Arts is a non-profit collaborative leader, which plays an integral role in the community by demonstrating the passion and commitment to the development of the arts through progressive and diverse educational programs, dynamic exhibits and an arts festival which is the foundation of artistic expression within the community.

History of MDCA

In 1975, a group of art-loving citizens held the first Mount Dora Arts Festival. It was a small event, but it was a big success and they decided to have an Arts Festival every year. In 1984, many of these same citizens of Mount Dora banded together to form the Mount Dora Cultural Council. It was their goal to celebrate the arts in Mount Dora, as well as further promote and improve the quality of the Arts Festival. Staffed by volunteers and funded through membership dues and private contributions, the Cultural Council began to grow.

In 1985, The Cultural Council moved into 138 East 5th Avenue. As time went by, more and more people joined the Cultural Council, and in 1986, the Board of Trustees resolved to change the name to Mount Dora Center for the Arts. The Mount Dora Center for the Arts has provided quality art experiences in the Lake County region of Central Florida ever since.

In 1989, the Board of Trustees hired the first full-time director to oversee operations and expand the Arts Festival. MDCA continues to produce the Mount Dora Arts Festival, Mount Dora’s signature event, which hosts almost 300 artists and draws 250,000 people. In 1995, with a 30% down payment and owner financed mortgage, the MDCA Board of Trustees purchased the building where the Art Center had been located for thirteen years.

And now, the Mount Dora Center for the Arts maintains a year-round calendar of arts-related events and activities and serves the community by providing changing exhibits of original art, arts education programs, classes, seminars and lectures.

Membership

We love our members! The Mount Dora Center for the Arts contributes to the quality of life in Lake County by hosting exciting exhibits, monthly Mount Dora Art Strolls, and the annual Mount Dora Arts Festival. The Art Center’s Summer Art Camp may be the program that most contributes to the community. For seven weeks each summer children have a place to be creative and thrive while having fun painting, sculpting and crafting. Benefits of membership include, but are not exclusive to: advance notice and registration opportunities for classes, seminars, lectures, and events; discounts on classes, seminars, and other programs sponsored by MDCA; invitations to all exhibit openings, receptions and other special events held by MDCA; and the opportunity for member artists to apply to Artisans on Fifth co-op gallery. “Be a Part of the Art” & join us today.

Footnotes

  1. ↑ Mount Dora Center for the Arts - General Information > History, 2008. Accessed September 8, 2008.
  2. ↑ MuseumsUSA. "Mount Dora Center for the Arts", MuseumsUSA website, 2008. Accessed September 8, 2008.
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