LETTER FROM THE DIRECTOR

Greetings!

Welcome to the fall season at the Lyman Allyn. We have very good news to celebrate. On July 22, the Connecticut Commission on Culture & Tourism approved our request for funding from the Arts Jobs Preservation Program. This program distributed stimulus funds from the National Endowment for the Arts and was made possible through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. Of the 93 institutions in the state who made application, the Lyman Allyn was one of 18 to receive funding. We are very grateful to the Commission for their generous support.

Our annual Gala, held on May 9 and themed “Dangerous Women” after our wonderful 19th century portrait of Abigail Dolbeare Hinman holding a musket to keep Benedict Arnold’s army at bay, was a great success. Attendees dined in the museum’s fancifully-decorated galleries and danced outdoors under a tent in the Foo Dog Courtyard. With newscaster Janet Peckinpaugh serving as emcee, we raised a record $34,000 for our Yellow Bus Fund which enables the Lyman Allyn to bus in schoolchildren on field trips from area schools, free of charge. I am grateful to all of you who have contributed to this important fund, allowing us to continue to serve our area schools at a time when so many school systems are forced to cut back on funding for the arts.

Save the date! We have an exciting event planned this fall in New York City: a cocktail party followed by admission to an exclusive Preview Performance of the Broadway show FELA! on Wednesday, October 21. Produced by Steven and Ruth Hendel, FELA! received rave reviews from the New York Times and the New York Post during its off-Broadway run and it sure to be a sellout success on Broadway. We hope you will join us for an exciting evening and support the Lyman Allyn’s fundraising efforts.

Our fall season kicks off on Saturday, September 12 with our new exhibitions Ajiaco: Stirrings of the Cuban Soul and Imna Arroyo: Ancestral Passage. The museum will host a community celebration from 1:00 – 4:00, with Afro-Cuban drumming, music, and children’s art activities. This exciting event is free and open to all. I am happy to announce that the Lyman Allyn is partnering with the Hispanic Alliance of New London on the programming that coordinates with this exhibition. This will include the Hispanic Film Series scheduled for Third Fridays featuring a film from a different Spanish-speaking country each month.

I am looking forward to the fall events and hope to see you at the Lyman Allyn!

Nancy Stula
Director and Curator