Designed by Rand Elliott Architects, the new building, which inspired the arts center’s 2020 opening exhibition’s theme of light and place, features a luminous façade that captures Oklahoma’s ever-changing weather and light. In addition to the 8,000 square feet of galleries for visual art, Folding Light includes a flexible theater space that seats 250, a dance studio and nine classroom studios. Campbell Art Park, the Sculpture Garden and North Lawn are outdoor spaces for exhibitions, programs and performances.
Folding Light is the centerpiece of the purpose-built 4.6-acre Oklahoma Contemporary campus, which has become a cultural gateway to downtown Oklahoma City. The grounds also include a renovated 9,839 square-foot historic warehouse (which houses studios for ceramics and fiber as well as metalsmithing and painting) and a three-block arts park, providing space for outdoor exhibitions, education programs and public performances.
In its new home in a more accessible location, Oklahoma Contemporary has increased program and class offerings for diverse audiences of all ages to meet the area’s growing demand for arts and culture. Two years after our opening was delayed due to the pandemic, classes and camps regularly sell out and programs like Second Saturday and exhibition openings continue to set new attendance records.
Major visual arts exhibitions anchor annual programming — inspiring workshops, conversations and classes to connect diverse audiences to innovative ideas and creative experiences. These shows feature the works of world-renowned artists from Oklahoma and beyond. Admission to exhibitions — and much of the new public programming — remains free. And the art continues outdoors. A sculpture garden features rotating works, and Campbell Art Park hosts large-scale sculptural installations year-round.
Oklahoma Contemporary, formed in 1989 as City Arts Center by Christian Keesee and Kirkpatrick Foundation director Marilyn Myers, is a nonprofit organization committed to providing quality, accessible and affordable arts programming. With a mission to encourage artistic expression in all its forms through education, exhibitions and performance, Oklahoma Contemporary is committed to instilling in the public a lifetime appreciation of the arts and enthusiasm for creative practice. For more information on free exhibitions, class schedules and public programs, visit oklahomacontemporary.org.
More information can be found in the media kit at https://bit.ly/OKCCulturalRenaissance. Past press releases and information are archived at okcontemp.org/press.