The MAC Mission
The McKinney Avenue Contemporary (The MAC) is a nonprofit organization that stands as a Dallas advocate for creative freedom offering the opportunity for experimentation and presentation of art in all disciplines. It supports the emerging and established artist’s role in society by providing a forum for critical dialogue with their audiences. This relationship is cultivated through education and innovative programming.
The MAC History
The MAC opened its doors in October 1994 as the only venue dedicated to the exhibition of art in all disciplines by local, regional, and international contemporary artists. Our intimate and flexible space presents art on a human scale. All visual art exhibitions, lectures and literary readings are free and open to the public. The MAC strives to make the challenging world of contemporary art relevant and accessible to new and continuing audiences. Since its opening, The MAC has set an extraordinary record: over two-hundred and seventy five visual artists have exhibited in The MAC galleries, not including our annual membership shows; full production seasons by our in-house theater group, Kitchen Dog Theater; monthly lectures by regional artists and art professionals; performance art, video and film presentations. Our exhibitions have been recognized nationally by Art News, Art in America, and the New York Times. The MAC has also received local recognition through “Best of” and “Top Ten” awards from the Dallas Observer, the Dallas Morning News, and D-Magazine. Since our inception, more than 10,000 people attended our events annually. Among some of the most internationally acclaimed contemporary artists that have exhibited their works at The MAC are James Drake, Mary Beth Edelson and Kara Walker.
We are members of the Dallas Art Dealers Association, Uptown Dallas Association and Luxury Marketing Council.
The MAC Building
The MAC is located in an 18,000 square foot building in the former Potts Longhorn Leather Company in the Uptown area of Dallas, Texas.
The building was renovated in 1994 by building designers Steve Lawson and Truett James into a handsome and flexible facility comprising a number of intimate and interconnected spaces. These include 3,700 square feet of visual art exhibition space, a 2,400 square foot black box theater, coffee shop and bookstore. In March of 2000, a 2,500 square foot theater, named the Heldt/Hall Theater, was added to the building. The dropped sheet-rock ceilings of the galleries are 13 feet high and the floor is concrete.
Programming Partners
In a constant effort to be a vital part of the Dallas art community and to offer quality programming to our audiences, The MAC partners with critically acclaimed organizations and galleries including: Kitchen Dog Theater, Deborah Colton Gallery, Kirk Hopper Fine Art, MFAH Core Program, Ro2 Gallery, Valley House Gallery, The Writer’s Garret, WordSpace and The Latino Cultural Center. Kitchen Dog Theater has been the recipient of numerous awards including the 1998 Rabin Award for best director and best production. The Writer’s Garret was ranked by the Literature Sub-granting Panel for the Texas Commission on the Arts as the #1 Literary Project in the State.
The MAC is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) tax-exempt corporation.