Monongalia Arts Center (MAC)

MAC has been serving Monongalia County and surrounding areas for the past 35 years. Please remember that MAC could not exist without your contributions and support. We enjoy serving as your community arts and culture center and hope to continue serving you in the future.

Monongalia Arts Center (MAC) is a non-profit arts and culture center serving Monongalia County and surrounding areas. MAC offers classes in both the visual and performing arts, as well as houses the Benedum Gallery, Davis Gallery, Tanner Theatre, and a gift shop featuring unique gifts and artwork from various local artists. Located between the historic Hotel Morgan and the old Morgantown Post Office on South High Street, Monongalia Arts Center is hard to miss. We have one of the oldest and most beautiful buildings in Morgantown. We are also the only building with a lawn downtown.

Mission:

Monongalia Arts Center is committed to providing a home for the visual, performing, and literary arts through programming and educational outreach.

History:

The Louis F. Tanner family purchased the building from the federal government on September 13, 1975. When this beautiful, 1913 Neo-classical building was purchased, the intentions of the Tanner family were for the property to be developed and maintained as a cultural center for the perpetuation of the arts and history of the community, and to be a place for those efforts to be displayed, taught, and practiced.

The creation of such a center was a long held dream of Mabel DeVries Tanner. Mrs. Tanner was born in New York City on August 2, 1898. She came to Morgantown with her husband, Louis immediately after their marriage in 1924. Mrs. Tanner founded the Morgantown Players, a highly active community theatre group. She was a critic of the arts for the local newspapers for forty years and remained devoted to the arts until her death in 1974. Mrs. Tanner had envisioned a facility complete with a theatre, art gallery, classrooms, and workshop space that would house the performing and creative arts, as well as provide a central point from which to foster the arts and encourage their growth.

In June 1976, the Monongalia County Arts Center Association, Inc. was chartered. After two years of planning and development, MAC opened its doors to the public in June of 1978. In 1979, the building was placed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Stop by to see our current exhibits, sign up for a class, or converse with local artists at our receptions. We can't wait to see you!

MAC offers FREE WiFi (802.11g/n) throughout the building and in the front lawn.

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