When we launched Scenic 98 Coastal three years ago, one of the first people I met and spent time with was Maria Goldberg in Pensacola. She couldn’t have been nicer or more helpful in better understanding Pensacola’s art community. 

Maria is exceptional. She is now the Director of Marketing, Public Relations, and Events for Great Southern Restaurants. Before joining the restaurant group, she served as the Executive Director of Pensacola’s Museum of Art, and she graciously took time to give Linda and me a walking tour of Pensacola’s art scene.

“We are fortunate to have had these people who wanted the Big Five, and every city of note wants to enhance the quality of life in their city: an art museum, a symphony orchestra, the performing arts center, the opera, and the ballet.” For a metropolitan area of about 450,000 or so, Pensacola has had the Big Five for decades. “This didn’t just happen,” says Maria. “Fast forward to today, and we have so many galleries, organizations, and festivals related to arts and culture because of the Big Five established years ago.”

When Bryant Whelan retired as Executive Director of the Eastern Shore Art Center in May 2023 she confided that her replacement had been hired and would be announced soon. A few weeks later, Pelham Pearce, who goes by Pat, took the reins. I invited Pat to lunch to learn more about him and his vision for ESAC. “Give me a year to get a lay of the land, then I’ll be ready,” he told me.

We stayed in touch, and after a year and a half, I called Pat. “I’m ready,” he said. We met at Provision and I must say, I was impressed. Don’t get me wrong, Pat is unassuming, and humble, but highly capable and experienced when it comes to both visual and performing arts. 

Lots of folks who take over a position want to leave their mark on the organization come hell or high water. Pat's approach was to get a lay of the land first, evaluate what was working, what needed to be addressed, and what was the mission of the Eastern Shore Art Center in context to a booming population.

Fairhope, which ESAC has called home since 1952, almost 75 years, has always been known as “an art community.” It is a haven for artists in Baldwin County. While it continues to serve the local Eastern Shore, Pat saw the need to reach out throughout the County and incorporate aspects of the performing arts with visual arts for everyone's benefit.

“The more opportunity you can create, the more value you add to the organization,” he tells me. “Take what we do inside the building outside to the community to offer a greater impact.” He goes on, “We are the largest art institution in Baldwin County, but we are called Eastern Shore Art Center. We want to reach the underserved communities in Baldwin County like Bay Minette, Elberta, Atmore, and Brewton.” (Escambia County bordering Baldwin County).

“Our goal is to provide a concentrated arts impact by bringing both the visual arts and the performing arts, like the Mobile Symphony, Mobile Ballet, the Mobile Opera, and the Eastern Shore Repertory Theater into play in our more rural communities.”

Pat’s vision for Eastern Shore Art Center is grounded in experience. Born in Mobile, the son of a Methodist minister, the family moved around the state quite a bit until his father left the ministry and became an engineer. He earned his undergraduate degree at the University of South Alabama in Choral Conducting and Literature and his Masters in Vocal Performance.

As an undergraduate, Pat was an assistant at the Mobile Opera. After graduation, the director position became open, and he served as General Director for 10 years from 1986 until 1996. He was recruited to become the Executive Director at Central City Opera in Denver, Colorado, where he stayed for 26 years.

“Central City Opera is the 5th oldest opera camp and 2nd oldest opera summer festival in the United States. As the West developed, every town wanted a church, a school, and an opera house to be considered legitimate.. I managed both the business and artistic side of Central City Opera, including managing historic properties throughout the area.”

He tells me that these properties were necessary to house over 100 people each summer who attended the opera festivals and performances. “It was a beast on its own. We did great work, and I’m very proud of my time there, but you reach a certain place in life when it’s time to move on.”

Part of Pat’s decision to leave Colorado, a place he loved, was to tend to his aging parents. “I always pined for the water and knew I would return home one day.” He moved to Mobile in 2022. He says he was still interested in doing something in the arts, and when the Executive Director position opened at the Eastern Shore Art Center he felt he could handle it, and accepted the position in May 2023.

“When I arrived, I wanted to understand the mission, what we could do, where the energy was. Where there is energy, there is opportunity. We have a fantastic staff, and Baldwin County is thriving.”

I asked him how things were going after 18 months on the job. “Great. We are maxed out on physical space on the academy side. Art classes and summer camp programs sell out quickly. People want to try their hand at being creative. It’s a form of self-expression that is ‘artistic medicine’. You don’t have to be the next Picasso, just learn the basics and go out on your own being artistic.”

He goes on, “The visual arts are everywhere. There has to be something in you that rises to greatness. Expressing yourself through an artistic medium is a release you may not have realized you need, but art is very therapeutic.”

We talked about how exposure to the arts has changed over time in America. “It used to be that parents exposed their children to the arts. The performing arts, like symphony, opera, ballet, and theater were on television frequently when we grew up. Even advertising exposed us to the visual arts at the time. Today, you could go your entire life without exposure to the arts. It’s disappeared. Support for the arts is not increasing. People on high make decisions that impact having the arts in school.”

“I don’t like that concept, but I understand where we are. We haven’t created value for the arts. Art for art's sake won’t get it anymore. The national perspective on the arts in the last decade has declined. It’s disappeared from television. We need to create value for the arts, so we have developed an outreach program to help bring visual and performing arts back into focus. This is how we add value to our mission.”

As the area’s largest art institution in Baldwin County, Pat sees the potential of expanding the arts through collaborations with the performing arts at satellite sites to broaden the exposure to our rapidly growing Scenic 98 Coastal communities. It was inspiring to hear his vision for community outreach. 

Eastern Shore Art Center has hired Lindsey Lawrence as Director of Outreach. ESAC recently brought 400 children from Elberta to see a production of Annie at the Eastern Shore Repertory Theater. Working with the Mobile Ballet, ESAC hosted The Princess and the Frog performance last Thursday evening for free at Coastal Alabama Community College after sell-out performances in Mobile the previous weekend.

Dr. Tom Myers, an ESAC board member, facilitated a program with USA Children and Women’s Hospital CEO, Debbie Brown, to provide art for long-stay kids. “It was so obviously mutually beneficial,” says Debbie, who was familiar with these programs in other places she has been. The Storm Drain Project is another program ESAC created for children to paint storm drain covers. Local potter Zack Sierke is developing a show in conjunction with the Poarch Creek Indians to illustrate the importance of clay to the indigenous people.

“Our entire rural initiative is designed to advance awareness and impact of the arts. It’s a leg of our programming that we are putting a lot of energy into,” says Pat. “It’s the opportunity to put art in front of people, to enhance creativity, and recognize the value of art to the economic vibrancy of any community. Since we have maxed out our physical space, it makes sense to take our mission to the people.”

Pat tells me ESAC recently received a grant from the State Arts Council, the Fairhope Single Tax Corporation, and a private donation to renovate the facility, including a new elevator, a new bathroom on the first floor, and a new entrance to the gift shop. 

“We have great art exhibits throughout the year, and these improvements are exciting and overdue. This will make our venue more accessible, not only for exhibits but also for private events. The Eastern Shore Art Center is a great place to entertain. You can rent one room or the entire gallery.”  

Eastern Shore Art Center is hosting its Spring Homes Tour this weekend. The tour will focus on six “Fruit and Nut” waterfront properties. Tickets are $50 and can be purchased online at Eastern Shore Art Center, with proceeds benefitting the art center. The Pilot family is the primary sponsor and a VIP cocktail party will be held on Friday night at Old Barn at Chapel Farm and includes the home tour on Saturday, April 12 from 10 am until 4 pm. Tickets are available for $150 per person.

Eastern Shore Art Center has come a long way in 73 years. Under Pat’s tutelage, the future looks bright!