About Us....

One of Atlantic City's secret treasures, the Art Center has been providing residents and visitors alike with an unparalleled opportunity to view the work of noted national and regional artists with the beautiful Atlantic Ocean as a backdrop for the past 40 years.

Re-opening July 31, 1994 after a $5 million 2-year restoration under a 1991 City of Atlantic City bond ordinance, the pier continues to house the Atlantic City Art Center and the Atlantic City Historical Museum.

Garden Pier derived its name from the beautifully arranged flower gardens on its deck. Its previous career was a glamorous, having featured international headlines while serving as a summer setting for musicals, concerts and plays.

History of the Garden Pier

The pier opened in 1908 when a row of stores was erected on a 175 foot frontage at New Jersey Avenue by George H. Earle of Philadelphia, PA. Earle sold those stores to the pier holding and Realty Company in January 1912.

The first Garden Pier was erected in 1913 at a coast of more than $1,000,000.00. It had walls of Terra Cotta tile built around structural steel frames with Spanish title rooms and copper cornices. Flower beds occupied the center of the structure. A theater was built on the ocean end of the pier, an Easter concert by great Irish tenor John McCormick was a tradition for many years along with the John Phillip Sousa band.

The pier was acquired by the City of Atlantic City and rehabilitated with luxury tax monies. It reopened as a city operation during the 1954 centennial celebration.

 A large concert state and band shell with seats for 1500 spectators was added an elaborate fountain and garden plots in the center of the pier. Granite for the fountain is reputed to have cost in excess of $100,000 and when completed it represented expenditures of approximately $250,000.

  The pier itself is supported by concrete pilings that very in size according to the super imposed load. These piles were jetted down not less than twenty feet and in some cases forty feet below the ocean floor. They vary in diameter from six to nine feet.

In the Atlantic City Art Center exhibitions of paintings, sculptures and photography by artists throughout the USA are featured.

Garden Pier is open Tuesday through Sunday, from 10AM to 4PM. Admission and parking is free.

 

 

Art Center Gallery

Three exhibition galleries change monthly and bi-monthly featuring artwork by contemporary artists and artisans of national, regional and local renown.

The gallery shop offers unique items for sale and features handmade glass from historic Wheaton Village in Millville, New Jersey.

The Art Center presents a wide variety of activities in conjunction with exhibits including concerts, gallery talks, artist demonstrations and literary readings

Funding for programs has been provided in part by the NJ State Council of the Arts, Department of State, through the Local Arts Grant Program administered by the Atlantic County Office of Cultural & Heritage Affairs.

Executive Director: Kaleem Shabazz