The Fort Malden Guild of Arts and Crafts – the board that operates the Gibson Gallery – are celebrating the realization of a long-time goal.
Board members held a ribbon cutting for the new LED sign in front of the gallery, located at 140 Richmond St., last Tuesday evening. David Cozens, president of the board, cut the ribbon as he was surrounded by board members.
“The sign has been on our wish list for the last 15 years,” explained Cozens. “We’ve been setting funds aside for over ten years. We were finally able to purchase the sign in 2023.”
Cozens, who also chaired the gallery’s sign committee with the assistance of board member Carole Deschaine, added they had to work with the Town of Amherstburg regarding the installation. He said director of parks, facilities and culture Heidi Baillargeon helped co-ordinate various departments in order to have the gallery’s sign installed.
“She gathered us all together and we sat down for a meeting. She was a big asset,” said Cozens.
The new LED sign was “a significant expense” for the gallery, he added, but they believe it will be well worth it.
“We are hoping it will pay off by increasing traffic through the gallery,” he said.
There are Amherstburg residents who don’t realize the gallery is there or don’t know what it is all about, he stated.
The sign was installed roughly one month ago and Cozens said the goal is to give the Gibson Gallery “much needed exposure to the public.” He said the building, a historic former train station, is set back off of Richmond St. and behind neighbouring Shoppers Drug Mart.
“We’re hopeful the high resolution LED sign will help us get our messages out,” he said, “and allow us to post information about exhibits, children’s classes, adult classes, various guilds that meet at the gallery, Art by the River and our railway museum.”
The Gibson Gallery is excited about new and returning events this year such as the Art Crawl, a trunk sale and pop-up sales. Combined with the new sign, Cozens said they are optimistic visitors and tourists will find the gallery.
“We’ve had several people contact us about the sign,” he added. “They really like it. Some want to know where we bought it.”
Cozens said they are still learning how to program it and are working to have a steady rotation of impactful messaging on it.
“The programming of it is a learning experience,” said Cozens. “We hope to change the messages on a regular basis and keep everyone’s attention.”
The sign will be turned off between 11 p.m.-7 a.m. so that it doesn’t become a distraction to neighbours.
For more information on the Gibson Gallery or its programs and exhibits, visit www.gibsongallery.org or call 519-736-2826. Their current hours are Thursday-Sunday 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Gibson Gallery cuts the ribbon to celebrate new LED sign
By Ron Giofu