Historic Triangle residents do not have to travel far to visit the best collection of art in the commonwealth.
The American Art Awards has selected the Williamsburg Art Gallery in Merchants Square as the best gallery in Virginia, according to the Huffington Post.
“We are thrilled with this news,” said Williamsburg Art Gallery Director Gulay Berryman. “They said they usually select galleries that have been in business with excellent reputations for 25-plus years. We’ve only been open 18 months now, so we are quite pleased with ourselves.”
Each year, the board selects the 25 best museums and galleries in the Unites States. The Williamsburg Art Gallery was selected as one of the nation’s top 25 — in addition to being named Virginia’s best.
According to Huffington Post, several criteria factor into their selections, including reputation, location, size, programs, exhibits, and references from artists, clients and visitors.
“This time capsule is part of the rich Historic Triangle and dedicated to showcasing the beauty of the region,” American Art Awards President Thom Bierdz said of the Williamsburg gallery. “They exhibit artists ranging from celebrated local landscape traditionalists to international artists from Italy, Turkey, France, Panama, The Netherlands and most recently, exceptional work by Russian painters of the Moscow School of Russian Realism.”
The website for the annual award says its mission statement is to introduce the top museums and galleries in the United States to artists from around the world.
The Williamsburg Art Gallery features works across various mediums from 40 different artists.
“I’m hopeful that the Williamsburg Art Gallery will be a showcase for the beauty of our region and also serve as a crossroads of art,” Berryman said.
