Peninsula Fine Arts Center - Expansion, Affiliation and Accreditation (1981-1993)

Expansion, Affiliation and Accreditation (1981-1993)

In 1983, the PAA officially became The Peninsula Fine Arts Center and was named an Affiliate of the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts. As the Center started receiving more attention, David L. Peebles was named Chairman of the Capital Campaign in 1985 to raise $1.5 million for a new wing for Pfac. With the successful commitment of the private and public sector, the ground-breaking ceremony was held March 14, 1988. Award-winning Williamsburg, VA architect Carlton Abbott designed the new addition.

The expansion and renovation provided an addition to triple exhibition space and to develop a suitable entry area, classrooms, workshop and art handling areas with provision for security, barrier-free accessibility and state-of-the-art temperature, humidity and ventilation systems. Usable floor space increased from 4,000 square feet to over 15,000 square feet with three galleries, a hallway gallery, video gallery, four art classrooms and a meeting room.

The official Grand Opening celebration of the Fine Arts Center was held on the weekend of April 30, 1989. The reception was marked by the opening of an exhibition called "TRIBUTARY: 3,000 Years In the Course of Art," an impressive display at the new facility that would come to hold 15-20 exhibitions a year. In total, Pfac has featured nearly 500 exhibitions in its history, including annual juried shows, holiday invitationals, high school and college competitions, as well as curated shows.

By 1992, as the Center celebrated its 30th Anniversary, the museum had grown into one of the most influential contemporary art organizations in Virginia. An exclusively 3-Dimensional exhibition in 1990 was praised as the most important contemporary art exhibit in the region in nearly a decade by local art critics.

In 1993, the Center earned accreditation by the American Alliance of Museums, an effort that took nearly two years of self-evaluation and an in-depth report that was analyzed for months by the AAM.