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The Gibbes Museum of Art plays a vital role in the cultivation, preservation and advancement of the arts and art education in the greater Charleston metropolitan area. Joining the Gibbes ensures your involvement in the vibrant, dynamic community for the visual arts in the Lowcountry. We welcome your participation!

The Gibbes offers membership at various levels -- each designed to strengthen your involvement in Charleston's vibrant culture of creativity. For more information regarding membership categories and benefits, select either General Membership or the Museum Fellows Program.

Become a Member Now!

INDIVIDUAL $45

  • One Membership card and free unlimited admission for one person to the Museum
  • Signature, the illustrated magazine that publishes three times per year
  • Invitations and announcements for special events, public programs and exhibition receptions
  • Reduced rates for Museum public programs
  • Discount of 10% on Museum Shop merchandise
  • Special Members-only shopping opportunities

STUDENT $30
A Membership category designed for full-time students currently enrolled at an accredited high school, college, university or art school. A copy of a valid school ID must accompany application.

  • Benefits of Individual Membership

ARTIST $50

  • Benefits of Individual Membership, plus
  • One curatorial appointment per year to view works from the permanent collection in storage
  • Access to portable seating for sketching (pencil, pastel, charcoal) in Museum galleries
  • Unlimited painting privileges in Gibbes courtyard

DUAL $75

  • Benefits of Individual Membership, plus
  • Two Membership cards and free unlimited admission for two to the Museum

FAMILY $100
A Membership category designed for families with children. Grandparents may purchase a Family Membership to include visiting grandchildren under the age of 18.

  • Benefits of Dual Membership, plus
  • Unlimited free admission for children of Family Members under the age of 18
  • Reduced rates on Museum family programs for the whole family
  • Members at the Family ($100) level and above receive free admission and member discounts at over forty museums in the Southeastern United States (View the complete list ) and at over 100 participating museums in the North American Reciprocal Membership program (View the complete list )

CONTRIBUTING $250

  • Benefits of Family Membership, plus
  • Free unlimited admission for up to two guests when accompanied by the Contributing Member
  • One free Gibbes exhibition poster available in Museum Shop upon presentation of Contributing Membership card

SUSTAINING $500

  • Benefits of Contributing Membership, plus
  • Free unlimited admission for up to four guests when accompanied by the Sustaining Member
  • Assortment of 10 note cards selected by the Museum featuring works from the permanent collection
  • Listing in the Annual Report for two individuals
  • Within the limits prescribed by law, $500 is tax deductible

MUSEUM FELLOWS MEMBERSHIP CATEGORIES

ALFRED HUTTY FELLOW $1,000
“Come quickly. Have found heaven.” were the words that Alfred Hutty (1877-1954) wired his wife in 1919 upon arrival in Charleston. Part of the Woodstock, New York, artist colony, Hutty ventured South to find a pleasant place to spend winters. He became the first director of the Gibbes School of Art and a founding member of the Charleston Etchers’ Club.  Noted for his skill as a draftsman, Hutty today is considered a principal artist of the Charleston Renaissance.  The Gibbes houses the largest publicly owned collection of Hutty’s work, including oils, watercolors, drawings and prints.

  • Benefits of Sustaining Membership, plus
  • Acknowledgement in Signature, the illustrated magazine for Members
  • Listing for two individuals in the Museum foyer
  • Opportunities to deepen Museum involvement and understanding through exclusive, behind-the-scenes art programs
  • Privilege to use, for a fee, select Museum facilities for receptions and special events
  • Invitation for two individuals to attend annual Museum Fellows luncheon
  • One free publication selected by the Museum
  • Within the limits prescribed by law, $935 is tax deductible

EDWIN HARLESTON FELLOW $2,500
Edwin Harleston (1876-1931), Charleston native and graduate of the prestigious Avery Normal Institute and Atlanta University, studied painting at the School of the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston and the Art Institute of Chicago before returning to Charleston in 1913. Despite his strong foundation, Harleston’s career as a Charleston Renaissance artist was one of frustration and financial struggle. Instead, he became a prominent businessman and civil rights leader and achieved artistic recognition only after his death. Harleston’s most notable portraits are of philanthropist Pierre S. Dupont and Harlem Renaissance artist Aaron Douglas. The Gibbes houses the largest public collection of Harleston’s work.

  • Benefits of Hutty Fellow, plus
  • A Champagne VIP tour for up to eight individuals to be scheduled upon the request of the Harleston Fellow at a time mutually agreed upon by Fellow and Museum staff
  • Invitations for two individuals to participate in select events for collectors, tours conducted by curators and unique travel opportunities
  • A discount of 20% on Museum Shop merchandise
  • Within the limits prescribed by law, $2,335 is tax deductible

ALICE RAVENEL HUGER SMITH CIRCLE $5,000
A native Charlestonian, Alice Smith (1876-1958) spent her entire life painting and writing about the South Carolina Lowcountry. She received early training at the School of the Carolina Art Association, today the Gibbes School of Art. Smith considered Motte Alston Read’s collection of Japanese wood-block prints, a part of the Museum’s permanent collection, and such visiting artists as Birge Harrison, Bertha Jacques and Helen Hyde among the greatest influences on her work as a painter and printmaker. Drawing upon these and other resources, Smith developed a unique ethereal style that conveys a passion for nature and the Lowcountry region. The Gibbes holds the most extensive public collection of Smith’s works.

  • Benefits of Harleston Fellow, plus
  • Invitation for two individuals to attend exclusive Smith Circle festivities, including private dinners and those in the Gibbes Rotunda hosted by the Museum Director featuring curators and other special Museum guests
  • Exclusive art travel opportunities and reciprocal partnerships with important museums and local art collectors
  • Annual adoption of a work of art from the Museum’s notable permanent collection on view at the Gibbes with name of Smith Circle Member featured on the label of the selected work
  • Framed print from Smith’s A Carolina Rice Plantation
  • Free exhibition catalogs and art-related travel guides selected by the Museum
  • Free, unlimited admission for up to eight guests when accompanied or scheduled by the Smith Circle member
  • Within the limits prescribed by law, $4,735 is tax deductible