A Charleston Arts Timeline

Important Moments From Our Archives

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2025

1975

Joseph P. Riley Jr. Becomes Mayor

In December 1975, at the age of 32, Joseph P. Riley Jr. is inaugurated as Charleston’s 60th mayor in December 1975. His tenure marks the beginning of a transformative era with significant investments in cultural and urban development that would infl uence the city’s artistic and cultural growth for decades. A champion of the arts, he helps woo Gian Carlo Menotti and the Spoleto Festival here in 1977 and launches Piccolo Spoleto and other initiatives, planting the seeds for another cultural renaissance for the then sleepy city.

Read our interview with Mayor Riley as he entered his last year in office.

1977

The First Spoleto Festival Opens

The city’s old guard meets the avant-garde in May with the opening of the Spoleto Festival, founded by Pulitzer Prize-winning composer Gian Carlo Menotti, who created the Festival dei Due Mondi in Spoleto, Italy. The performing arts festival brings world-class opera, music, dance, and theater to Charleston—including past premieres such as Creve Coeur by Tennessee Williams (1978), The American Clock by Arthur Miller (1980), and Empty Places by Laurie Anderson (1989)—and plays a crucial role in establishing the city as a premier destination for the arts, attracting artists and audiences from around the world. Along with the 17 days of performances comes community participation in the form of Spoleto parties, whereby local patrons—such as Peter and Patti McGee—host post-performance gatherings for artists, directors, and producers in their homes. There’s even tell of an elephant named Butch at one local soiree in the 1990s.

1978

Charleston Stage Lifts the Curtain on Its First Production, A Christmas Carol

After the city’s newly created Office of Cultural Affairs taps aspiring director Julian Wiles to create the Young Charleston Theatre Company, its inaugural season opens with the Dickens classic at the Dock Street Theatre. Renamed Charleston Stage in 1993, the company has staged more than 360 productions over the years, while keeping education at the forefront with its TheatreSchool classes for kids, TheatreWings apprentice program for high school students, and the opportunity for some half-million school children to attend free performances.

Read our profile of founding director Julian Wiles.

1979

The MOJA Arts Festival Is Born

“Charleston is experiencing a refreshing renaissance of the arts, and it is only fitting that a Black Arts Festival should take place at this time,” wrote teacherturned-community activist Ruby Cornwell in the Evening Post after the fi rst biennial in October 1979. Rebranded in 1984 as the MOJA Arts Festival—from the Swahili word for “one”—the multi-day and -genre celebration focuses on the city’s African American and Caribbean heritage through visual arts, music, theater, poetry, dance and drum troupes, traditional crafts, and foodways. Now under the direction of Grammy Award-winning jazz musician Charlton Singleton, the fall festival has gained renewed energy with top-tier talents such as gospel singer Kelontae Gavin and comedian Marlon Wayans.

1979

The Piccolo Spoleto Festival Spills Throughout the City

Led by director Ellen Dressler Moryl, the Office of Cultural Affairs launches Piccolo Spoleto as a more accessible and affordable, community-focused companion to Spoleto Festival, showcasing local and regional artists. Piccolo in Italian means “small,” but in Charleston it has annually meant hundreds of artistic offerings spilling throughout the region. While those offerings have evolved over the decades, some classics remain, including the Sunset Serenade concert at the US Custom House, the sand-sculpting competition on the Isle of Palms, the Sundown Poetry Series at Dock Street Theatre, and the Festival Finale at Hampton Park.

1979

The College of Charleston Builds Its Own Fine Art Center

The now-public liberal arts college expands its class offerings, opening the 85,000 square-foot building named for Albert Simons, the “Dean of Charleston Architects” and a former professor.

1982

Philip Simmons Receives the National Heritage Fellowship Award

In the first year of its creation, this highest honor in folk and traditional arts from the National Endowment for the Arts is bestowed on the legendary, local blacksmith, recognizing his mastery of decorative wrought iron and his contributions to the creation and preservation of Charleston’s architectural identity.

Tour his work throughout the city in 2006.

1982

Lonnie’s Opens on Market Street

Charleston County councilman and saxophone player Lonnie Hamilton debuts his Market Street lounge, featuring Lonnie Hamilton & the Diplomats and infusing the city with jazz. The beloved group would later move upstairs at Henry’s for nine years. In 2022, Charleston Jazz recognized Hamilton’s innumerable contributions to the city with its “Tip of the Hat” award, calling him “the embodiment of Charleston’s rich jazz legacy.”

1983

The College of Charleston Establishes The Halsey Gallery

The college continues to enhance its visual art program, founding a gallery dedicated to contemporary works. The following year it is named in honor of native Charlestonian William Halsey, who taught the fi rst studio art course at the college in 1964 and would become known as the “Dean of Abstract Art in South Carolina.” In the early years, it primarily exhibits the works of faculty, students, and graduates.

Meet trailblazing artists William Halsey and Corrie McCallum.

1983

The Southeastern Wildlife Exposition (SEWE) Debuts

Three Columbia-based outdoorsmen with ties to Ducks Unlimited, seeking to launch a Southern rendition of Maryland’s Waterfowl Festival, choose Charleston. With the Francis Marion Hotel as its base, SEWE welcomes 5,000 attendees for three days in February to view the works of 100 artists and attend various events, including the state duckcalling contest. Considered a wild success, it quickly grows into the largest festival of its kind in the US, attracting fine artists, conservationists, and wildlife experts, as well as 40,000 attendees annually. In 2019, SEWE establishes a permanent exhibit, installing six sculptures of creatures indigenous to the Lowcountry at Mount Pleasant Memorial Waterfront Park.

1983

Chopstick Theater Pops Up All Over Town—& the State

Youth theater actors-directors George Altman, Steve Lepre, and Robin Shuler create this small, by-the-seat-of-theirpants troupe, producing shows in theaters, schools, parks, and restaurants—wherever they could. They delight audiences with lowbudget, low-tech works that “blend literature, humor, and a taste for the macabre,” according to the Charleston News & Courier. They also travel the state, performing for thousands of school children annually and, in 1991, receive the Governor’s Award for the Arts for having “significantly increased the quality of arts endeavors” in South Carolina.

1984

Maestro David Stahl Takes Over the Charleston Symphony Orchestra

The New York-born conductor, who debuted at Carnegie Hall at age 23 and served as assistant conductor of the New York Philharmonic under Leonard Bernstein, takes the baton of what was regarded as a small, community ensemble and builds it into a professional, regional orchestra during his 25 year tenure.

Late 1980s

The French Quarter Art Walk Invites Patrons In

When ceramist Nina Liu opened her State Street house/gallery in 1986, she adopts an opendoor policy—allowing patrons to browse the mix of objects, paintings, photography, and more beyond the gallery and into her personal collection. Soon after, she helps found the French Quarter Art Walk, which has invited thousands of art lovers to meet artists and see their works in galleries throughout the old walled city. Though Liu has moved on from Charleston, her infl uence continues with the quarterly art strolls.

1991

Spoleto’s First Site-Specific Art Exhibit, “Places With a Past,” Causes a Stir

For the two-years-in-the-making contemporary art exhibition conceived by general manager Nigel Redden and curated by Mary Jane Jacob, international artists use Charleston as a canvas, interpreting various sites, including David Hammons’ The House of the Future (above) on America Street. The thought-provoking exploration of the city’s many historical layers is critically well-received but exposes artistic differences between founder Gian Carlo Menotti and Redden, who resigns months later.

1995

Nigel Redden Returns & Gets Spoleto Back on Track

Following Menotti’s resignation, the former GM comes back as general director to fi nd a festival on the brink, with more than half the staff laid off and the program expenses over budget by more than 20 percent, on top of a $1.2 million debt. Within a year, he cuts the debt in half. Astute fundraising and fi nancial stewardship are hallmarks of his management, helping steer the festival through the recession of 2008-2009 and the unprecedented cancellation of the entire 2020 program due to the pandemic. Redden retires at the end of 2021, ready to invite new voices into leadership roles. “The overall feel of the festival has remained consistent with Menotti’s original framework—this idea that one should have a broad range of the arts that collide in a sort of catalytic effect. It’s a vision that renews itself from year to year,” he says.

Read our profile of Nigel Redden during his last season as Spoleto general director.

1995

Charleston County School of the Arts Opens

School of the Arts founder and principal Rose Maree Myers faces skepticism about the arts-centric curriculum, but within a decade proves success with high academic achievement. The school continues to thrive, offering disciplines in creative writing, dance, music, theater, and visual arts.

1999

Local Galleries Host the Charleston Fine Arts Annual

To the delight of visual art lovers near and far, eight downtown galleries, including the Wells Gallery and Coleman Fine Art, join forces as the Charleston Fine Art Dealers Association (CFADA). They organize an annual fall weekend of special events, including gallery openings, pleinair “Painting in the Park” demonstrations (sales of which benefi t the Gibbes Museum acquisition fund), artist talks, workshops, and a student competition.

2000

The Have Nots! Open Theatre 99

Touring improv troupe and Piccolo Spoleto mainstays The Have Nots! — Timmy Finch, Greg Tavares, and Brandy Sullivan (above)—start their own theater, offering unscripted mayhem on the regular and, a year later, improv classes. In 2004, they introduce the Charleston Comedy Festival, drawing national and regional talent, which continues today as Charleston Comedy Week. That trio has grown to a 55-member company, keeping audiences in stitches four nights a week.

2002

10 Artists Paint “Larger Than Life” for Piccolo Spoleto

Facades across the city are transformed as artists hang immense works on buildings in the “Larger Than Life: A Second Story Show” coordinated by Linda Fantuzzo. For the Gaillard Auditorium, Colin Quashie’s Got mlk features a milkmustachioed Martin Luther King Jr., serving both as a parody of the ad campaign and a sociopolitical reminder of King’s legacy. “Each piece will redesign a public space, giving it a new context,” Fantuzzo said in an interview at the time. The exhibit marks a renewed focus to public visual art for the festival.

2003

Pure Theatre Challenges The Status Quo

Rodney Lee Rogers and Sharon Graci launch their contemporary theater company aimed at challenging audiences with intelligent, character-driven plays. With grit, ambition, and a dedicated following, the little company that could has produced 22 seasons and 20-plus world premieres and created Pure Lab for playwright development, along with numerous camps, workshops, and programs for thespians of all ages.

Read our interview with Sharon Graci and Rodney Lee Rogers celebrating Pure Theatre’s 20th anniversary year.

2003

Redux Contemporary Art Center Is Born

Print Studio South and Redux Studios merge to become a nonprofit hub for visual artists, offering affordable studio spaces, printmaking facilities, a dark room, and two galleries.

Take a video tour of the present-day Redux facility on upper King Street:

2003

An Expansive New City Gallery Opens at One Vendue Range

Formerly housed in cramped quarters at the Dock Street Theatre, the two-story City Gallery overlooking Waterfront Park hosts its inaugural concurrent shows: “The Tesoriere Collection: A Treasure for Mepkin” and “Contemporary Charleston 2003,” featuring the works of 17 local artists, including Loren Schwerd and Michael Tyzack.

2003

The Charleston Jazz Initiative Recordsa Musical Legacy

College of Charleston professor Karen Chandler and journalist Jack McCray develop this School of the Arts program to document and preserve the African American jazz tradition in the Lowcountry and its diaspora throughout the US and Europe from the late 19th century to the present. Their work helps cement the seminal role Charleston played in the art form’s development.

Read our 2007 profile on the late Jack McCray.

2004

The First Annual Sweetgrass Festival Celebrates the Art Form

Former Mount Pleasant town councilwoman Thomasena Stokes- Marshall cofounds the festival to highlight the history and culture of the Gullah people and promote the artisans who preserve the sweetgrass-basketmaking tradition.

2005

The Halsey Gallery Becomes the Halsey Institute of Contemporary Art

The name change aptly reflects director Mark Sloane’s transformation of the college gallery—from a space primarily showcasing faculty, alumni, and student work—into an internationally recognized exhibition venue that attracts artists from around the world.

2006

The “Under the Radar” Art Contest Discovers New Local Talents

Charleston magazine partners with the Halsey Institute of Contemporary Art and the City Gallery at Waterfront Park to showcase emerging visual artists in the region. A group of 10, including photographer Alice Keeney and painter Townsend Davidson, are selected by a jury panel, with their works featured in the May 2006 issue and exhibited to the public.

Check out our 2019 “Above the Radar” exhibition celebrating contest alums from 2006 and 2011.

2007

Kulture Klash Presents a New View

The one-day arts fest wows a crowd at Storehouse Row with works from emerging and established artists, as well as a gra ti battle, DJs, live painting, and dance.

2008

The Charleston Jazz Orchestra Takes the Stage

Extending the Charleston Jazz Initiative’s mission to celebrate the legacy of Lowcountry jazz, journalist and author Jack McCray produces a big band concert called “The South Carolina Hit Parade,” featuring the Charlton Singleton Orchestra at the Charleston Music Hall. It becomes the prototype for a full-blown orchestra with an annual season of shows.

Read our 2010 profile on Charleston Jazz cofounder Charlton Singleton.

2008

The Gibbes Museum Awards Its First Factor Prize for Contemporary Southern Art

North Carolina-based photographer Jeff Whetstone wins the award and $10,000 cash prize for “work that contributes to a new understanding of art in the South.” The program, renamed The 1858 Prize for Contemporary Southern Art, continues annually.

2008

Mary Jackson Receives a MacArthur Genius Grant

The foundation selects the Charlestonborn fi ber artist for her mastery of sweetgrass basketmaking, stating “While preserving the culture and history of her ancestors, Jackson infuses this inherited art form with a contemporary aesthetic and expressiveness all her own.”

Meet the renowned artist in our 2019 feature.

2008

Memminger Reopens as Festival Hall

After spearheading the $6 million overhaul of Memminger Auditorium downtown, Spoleto Festival USA debuts the 1939 building as Festival Hall, a 10,000-square-foot black box space with flexible seating and staging and 1,400 feet of high-tech catwalk.

2010

The Dock Street Theatre Is Renewed

On April 1, the city’s hoi polloi turns out in black-tie finery to celebrate the rededication of North America’s first playhouse, following a three-year, $19 million renovation.

Read our 2010 feature about the then wave of investment in arts venues.

2010

CofC Introduces the Marion & Wayland H. Cato Center for the Arts

The $27 million facility housing the Halsey Institute of Contemporary Art and the School of the Arts’ rehearsal and performance space, dance and painting studios, and a photography suite opens on Calhoun Street, expanding the School of the Arts footprint by tens of thousands of square feet and allowing the Halsey to host large-scale installations like May 2010’s “Call & Response: The Art of Nick Cave and Phyllis Galembo” (on our May cover).

2012

Charles Carmody Brings New Energy to an Underused Downtown Venue

The 23-year-old takes the helm at the Charleston Music Hall in July, transforming the oft-dormant venue into an open-door space that welcomes local bands, charitable events, and national touring acts, often over the course of a single weekend.

Read our Q&A with Charles soon after he took over programming at the hall.

2013

The Colour of Music Festival Fuels a Black Classical Renaissance

Lee Pringle, founder of the Charleston Gospel Choir, launches the festival celebrating the works of composers of African descent and showcasing the talents of Black classical musicians.

2015

The Gaillard Center Is Revealed

The grand new Gaillard, a $143.5 million neoclassical performance hall and civic center, opens to great fanfare on October 9. Its stage is christened by none other than Yo-Yo Ma, performing with the Charleston Symphony Orchestra 11 days later.

Check out our 2015 preview of the new Gaillard.

2016

The Gibbes Gleams Again

A two-year, $13.5 million renovation returns the 1905 art museum to its Beaux Arts glory. Its jeweled dome newly clean and the intricate tessera tile floor, previously buried under industrial carpet, reveals the museum’s original grandeur. The first-floor spaces—including a gift shop and studios for working artists—offer a more welcoming and interactive presence.

2016

Porgy and Bess Returns

Spoleto brings the famed 1934 opera home again (it was fi rst performed in Charleston at the Gaillard in 1970) to celebrate the festival’s 40th anniversary in the newly overhauled Gaillard Center. As visual designer for the production, artist Jonathan Green sets the stage with a colorful dose of African cultural authenticity, honoring the Gullah aspects of DuBose Heyward’s tale.

Learn about artist Jonathan Green’s role as visual designer for the production and see his sketches.

2016

Spoleto Finds, Finishes, & Presents Edmund Thornton Jenkins’s Operetta, Afram ou La Belle Swita

Ninety years after the untimely death of Edmund Thornton Jenkins (below), Spoleto Festival USA premieres his unfinished operetta. The son of the world-renowned Jenkins Orphanage Band founder became one of the first American composers to merge musical nuances of the black South with the concert traditions of Europe.

Read our profile on the musical genius.

2016

Jail Break Becomes Charleston Arts Festival

After the October 2015 installment of the biannual arts and music festival, Jail Break founder Andrew Walker joins forces with Terry Fox, expanding the event into Charleston Arts Festival the following year, presenting visual art exhibitions as well as poetry, dance, and concert events over multiple days. The effort evolves to curate a variety of arts-related events throughout the year, including Pecha Kucha, which is likened to Ted Talks for creatives.

2020

Ranky Tanky Wins Its First Grammy Award

The beloved Charleston-based band that plays soulful, get-up-anddance versions of Sea Island spirituals and work songs takes home Best Regional Roots Music Album for the album Good Time.

Watch our exclusive video with the band at Moving Star Hall on John’s Island:

And check out our special online feature with additional videos.

2022

Edward Hart’s A Charleston Concerto Finally Premieres

Two years after COVID postponed its original debut, the composer and music professor’s homage to his hometown and its complex history is performed by the Harlem Quartet and the Charleston Symphony Orchestra at the Gaillard Center.

Read our 2020 interview with the composer.

2023

The Long-awaited International African American Museum Opens

After decades of planning and a six-month delay for climate control issues, IAAM hosts its grand opening to the public in June. Numerous events mark the occasion, including a dedication ceremony at the site, where more than 40 percent of the enslaved Africans in the US arrived in Charleston. Its collections of art, objects, and artifacts, along with the African Ancestors Memorial Garden, aim to tell the untold stories of the African American journey.

2024

The Albert Simons Center for the Arts Grows Up with the College

With an expanding student body, the School of the Arts invests millions in renovating its 45-year-old facility and, in September, unveils the state-of-the-art complex. The new center boasts a two-story black box theater complete with costume and scene shops and a theater design studio; sculpture, printmaking, and drawing studios; a digital lab and gallery; a recording studio; and an updated lecture hall.

2024

Kulture Klash Returns

After a nine-year hiatus, the dynamic arts fest—featuring visual art, music, dance, and interactive installations—resurfaces near its original home, in the newly retrofi tted Building 64 event space in Navy Yard Charleston, marking a full-circle moment for the progressive art scene. More than 2,500 attend, taking in the works of 100 artists, dance troupe Unbound Ballet Project, and dozens of bands and DJs.

2025

“A Charleston Celebration” Debuts at Carnegie Hall

On February 26, the College of Charleston Orchestra, Charleston Symphony Youth Orchestra, and Charleston Symphony perform a special program of Holy City-connected composers—Thomas Cabinass (Charleston Mix), Edmund Thornton Jenkins (Charlestonia), Yiorgos Vassilandonakis (Corsaro), Trevor Weston (Subwaves), and Edward Hart (A Charleston Concerto), showcasing “the city’s vibrant artistry” at the legendary venue.

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