Rowayton Arts Center Inc (RAC)

What Rowayton Arts Center Inc (RAC) does

Rowayton Arts Center Inc (RAC) is a Connecticut-incorporated nonprofit community arts organization headquartered at 145 Rowayton Avenue in Rowayton (Norwalk), Connecticut. Founded in 1960 and operating with a nine-person staff, RAC runs a light-filled first-floor gallery that rotates monthly exhibitions, including juried shows open to all artists and member-only exhibitions such as Photography & Sculpture, Marine & Coastal Art, and RAC Masters. The center also operates an adult and youth education program offering classes and workshops in watercolor, drawing, painting fundamentals, and photography, with instructors and a separate youth registration pathway.

RAC's service offering is organized around four functional pillars: exhibitions, education, member programs, and space rentals. Exhibitions are supported by an Exhibiting Membership program with a juried selection process and downloadable prospectuses. Education spans adult classes and workshops (including one-off guest-instructor formats such as 'Art of the Knife' with Susan Fehlinger), dedicated youth classes, and photography-specific instruction, with informal Open Sketch sessions in the studio. The facility is also rented out for private events, group tours, and art parties, exemplified by the Rowayton Parents Exchange's 'Heirloom Children's Portrait Event.'

The revenue model is multi-stream and characteristic of a small community nonprofit: recurring exhibiting and supporting membership fees, transactional class and workshop registration fees, exhibition entry fees from juried shows, one-time gallery/studio rental income, and a broad contributed-income program that includes individual donations, memorial gifts, planned giving, walkway stone purchases, and corporate sponsorships. Distribution is primarily local and regional — direct on-site engagement at the Rowayton gallery (Tuesday–Friday and Saturday hours, plus summer Sundays), online registration via secure.rowaytonarts.org, an online gallery on Carbonmade, and outreach through Constant Contact email, Facebook, and Instagram (@rowaytonarts). Pricing is not publicly disclosed. There are no disclosed patents, AI/ML capabilities, APIs, or external funding rounds; the organization is governed by a board led by Board President Jay Wilson and managed by Executive Director Andrea Letters, with Education Director Suzy Aubrey and Marketing Director Jane Seymour.

Name

Rowayton Arts Center Inc (RAC)

Legal name

Rowayton Arts Center Inc

Website

https://rowaytonartscenter.org

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Rowayton Arts Center Inc is a Norwalk, Connecticut-based nonprofit community arts center founded in 1960. It serves local artists, adult and youth students, and patrons through monthly exhibitions, juried shows, art classes and workshops, and gallery/studio rentals.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Community Arts Center

NAICS

Art Dealers (459920), Museums (71211), Arts, Entertainment, and Recreation (71)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600), Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900)

akta.pro primary industry

Arts Education & Community Arts Programs (BPAGAHAC)

akta.pro secondary industries

Visual Arts Instruction (Drawing, Painting, Sculpture) (EDAMAAAA), Personal Enrichment & Creative Arts Programs (EDAAAEAG), Visual Arts (Drawing, Painting, Illustration) (EDAAAGAA)

Keywords

• Community arts center
• Art exhibitions
• Art education classes
• Studio rentals
• Nonprofit arts organization

Headquarters

HQ city

Rowayton

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership Fees: RAC generates revenue through exhibiting member fees for artists who want to display and sell their work in the gallery, and supporting member fees for patrons who wish to support the organization.
2. Class and Workshop Registration: Adult and youth classes in various mediums including watercolor, drawing, and painting. Workshops for adults such as 'Art of the Knife' with Susan Fehlinger are offered at set dates.
3. Gallery/Studio Rentals: The RAC gallery and studio are available for rental for events, including private events like the Rowayton Parents Exchange portrait event and Art Party Rentals.
4. Donations and Support: Individual donations, memorial gifts, planned giving programs, walkway stone purchases, and corporate sponsorships support the organization's operations.
5. Exhibition Entry Fees: Juried shows such as Photography and Sculpture 2026 and Marine and Coastal Art 2026 are open to all artists with entry requirements.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Rowayton Arts Center (RAC) operates a nonprofit community arts center that runs rotating monthly art exhibitions in its first-floor gallery (including juried shows open to all artists and member-only exhibitions), delivers art education classes and workshops for adults and youth across mediums such as watercolor, drawing, painting, and photography, administers an exhibiting membership program with jury-based artist selection, and rents its gallery and studio spaces for private events and group visits.

Product overview

Rowayton Arts Center (RAC) is a community arts organization offering a unified program of art exhibitions, education classes and workshops, and space rentals. The core offerings include rotating monthly exhibitions featuring both juried shows (Photography & Sculpture, Marine & Coastal Art) and member-only shows, an extensive education program with classes in watercolor, drawing, painting, and photography for adults and youth, exhibiting membership with jury-based artist selection, and gallery/studio rental services for private events and group visits. The center also maintains an online gallery via Carbonmade for digital exhibition viewing.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Exhibitions Program Monthly rotating art exhibitions in RAC's first-floor light-filled gallery, including juried shows open to all artists and member-only exhibitions across media such as photography, sculpture, painting, and coastal-themed artwork.
• Adult Art Classes and Workshops Structured art education classes and workshops for adult learners at beginner through advanced levels, covering watercolor, drawing, painting fundamentals, and photography, along with guest-instructor workshops such as 'Art of the Knife'.
• Youth Classes and Workshops Art education programs designed for children and young artists, with separate registration pathways and age-appropriate instruction across multiple mediums.
• Photography Classes Specialized photography instruction offered as part of the adult education program at Rowayton Arts Center.
• Exhibiting Membership Program Membership program allowing artists to exhibit their work in RAC galleries, with selection drop-off dates and a prospectus-based jury process.
• Gallery and Studio Rentals Rental of RAC gallery and studio spaces for private events, group visits, tours, and art party celebrations.
• Open Sketch Sessions Informal gatherings where artists can sketch and create in a communal studio environment.
• Online Gallery Digital portfolio gallery hosted on the Carbonmade platform showcasing exhibiting member artwork and current exhibitions.

Named customers2 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Emerging players

• Norwalk Art Space: Community art space in Norwalk, CT offering exhibitions and artist studios. Geographic peer operating in the same city as RAC, with overlapping exhibition offerings but newer and less established.

Direct peers

• Greenwich Arts Council: Community arts nonprofit in Greenwich, CT supporting local artists through exhibitions, classes, and events. Similar membership-driven nonprofit model with comparable scale and Connecticut coastal community focus.
• Bruce Museum: Regional museum in Greenwich, CT combining art, science, and history exhibitions with educational programming. Comparable as a Connecticut-based nonprofit cultural institution with exhibitions and education offerings, though larger in scale.
• The Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum: Nonprofit contemporary art museum in Ridgefield, CT featuring rotating exhibitions and education programs. Directly comparable as a regional Connecticut nonprofit offering exhibitions and arts education, though with a more contemporary focus.
• Silvermine Arts Center: Nonprofit community arts center in New Canaan, CT offering exhibitions, art classes, and workshops. Operates within roughly 10 miles of RAC, serves a similar affluent Connecticut coastal community, and runs an analogous membership/education/exhibition model.
• Stamford Art Association: Local nonprofit arts organization in Stamford, CT hosting juried exhibitions, art classes, and community events. Operates in the same Fairfield County region with a similar member-artist orientation and gallery-based programming.
• Westport Arts Center: Nonprofit arts organization in Westport, CT providing exhibitions, classes, and community arts programming. Operates in the same Fairfield County geography as RAC with a comparable mission and program structure.
• Center for Contemporary Art (Bedminster): Nonprofit community art center in New Jersey offering exhibitions, studio art classes, and workshops for adults and youth. Closely comparable in mission, program mix (exhibitions + multi-level art education), and nonprofit structure.

Others

• Creative Arts Team (NYU): Educational arts programming organization focused on youth arts education. Comparable in delivering arts education but as a university-affiliated program rather than a community center model.

Broad incumbents

• Katonah Museum of Art: Nonprofit art museum in Katonah, NY offering exhibitions and education for the tri-state community. Comparable as a suburban nonprofit arts institution with rotating exhibitions and educational programs, but with a larger museum footprint.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/RowaytonArts
• Instagraminstagram.com/rowaytonarts
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/rowayton-arts-center-inc

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Rowayton Arts Center Inc (RAC)