Celebrating 25 Years of Chesapeake Arts Center
Honoring Our Past. Celebrating Our Community. Inspiring The Future.
In 2026, the Chesapeake Arts Center proudly celebrates 25 years of serving our community through the arts. Since opening our doors in 2001, CAC has been a welcoming home for creativity, connection, and cultural enrichment for residents of North Anne Arundel County and the Baltimore region, including the Brooklyn Park community and beyond.
This milestone anniversary is more than a celebration—it’s a reflection of the artists, families, students, supporters, and neighbors who have shaped CAC into the vibrant community space it is today. We invite you to celebrate with us all year long.
Celebrate with Us
Whether you’ve been part of the Chesapeake Arts Center family since the beginning or are discovering us for the first time, we invite you to join the celebration. Attend an event, participate in a workshop, visit the gallery, or simply stop by and share in the joy of 25 years of art and community. The events below are just a few of the activities we will host to celebrate our anniversary. Watch this space for details on these and other activities throughout 2026.
Together, we celebrate the past, honor the present, and create the future—one creative moment at a time.
Become a 25th Anniversary Sponsor
As we celebrate 25 years of art, education, and community, we invite local businesses, organizations, and individuals to partner with us as 25th Anniversary Sponsors. Sponsorship support plays a vital role in helping the Chesapeake Arts Center continue to offer accessible, meaningful arts programming for our community.
Anniversary sponsors will be recognized throughout our year-long celebration and associated events, while directly supporting the mission and future of CAC.
If you are interested in becoming a 25th Anniversary sponsor or would like to learn more about sponsorship opportunities, please contact Drew Cowen at dcowen@chesapeakearts.org . We would be honored to celebrate this milestone with you.
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Friday, March 13, 2026
7-10 pm
Doors Open at 6 pmAges 18+
Elks Lodge Severna Park
160 Truck House Rd, Severna Park, MD 21146Tickets| $35 in advance and $40 at the door. A reserved table for 8 or 10 people is available when you click the “Get Tickets” link below.
Admission includes: 16+ Games + 1 Door Prize Chance Ticket
Extra Card Packs, Bingo Markers, Food & Drink will be available for purchase. (No Outside Food or Drinks allowed)Come support the arts by joining us for a thrilling evening of Designer Purse and Cash Bingo! Your participation supports our arts and education programs and offers chances to win cash prizes and designer purses and accessories by COACH and Michael Kors. Enjoy tasty treats with a chance to win door prizes and participate in various raffles. Watch this space for more details.
Proceeds support CAC's Arts and Education Programs
After you’ve created an account (or if you have an account with CAC already), click on “Events” tab to purchase your tickets. You will receive a confirmation email once your order has been processed. On the night of the event, you just need to provide your name at the check in table for entry.
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April 18, 2026 | 10 am-2 pm
FREE | CAC Main Arts BuildingJoin us on April 18 as CAC celebrates its 25th anniversary year with an expanded World Arts Day Open House celebrating creativity, connection, and the arts. This free, family-friendly event will fill our Main Arts Center with an anniversary collaborative art project, live performances, hands-on workshops for all ages, gallery exhibitions, local artists and maker demonstrations, food trucks, raffles, door prizes, and new this year, an array of vendors.
Come and celebrate the arts and CAC’s 25 years of community impact!
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Chesapeake Arts Center & Arundel Federal Savings Bank Present….
13th Annual Chip in for the Arts Golf Tournament
Wednesday, June 10, 2026
at Compass Pointe Golf Course
Join us for our annual tournament as CAC celebrates our 25th Anniversary — of bringing the arts to underserved children and families in our community. Your participation as a sponsor, player, or volunteer helps CAC raise valuable funds to support our programs for our 26th year of service and beyond.Foursome and sponsorships will go on sale on February 20, 2026.
For more information,
contact Drew Cowen at Drew@chesapeakearts.org.
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October 23, 2026 | 6 pm
Baltimore Museum of IndustryHelp CAC celebrate 25 years of serving our community at our first gala fundraising event in more than 10 years.
Join us for a creative evening in a creative space at CAC’s 25th Anniversary Gala at the Baltimore Museum of Industry. Immerse yourself in interactive arts stations, live music, delicious food and drinks, unique visual displays, and exciting auctions. Experience art, community, and fun while supporting CAC’s programs that bring creativity to our community.
More details to come later this spring!
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Created Here: 25 Stories from the CAC Community
Do you have a memory, experience, or story connected to the Chesapeake Arts Center? As we celebrate our 25th Anniversary, we invite artists, students, audience members, volunteers, and community partners to help us tell CAC’s story.
Whether it’s a first class you took, a performance you’ll never forget, a friendship that began here, or how the arts have impacted your life—we would love to hear it and share it with our community. Your stories will help us honor the past and celebrate the people who have made CAC a creative home for 25 years. Throughout 2026 — our anniversary year—we will share 25 stories from you, our community members.
Share your story with us and be part of our anniversary celebration.
Email your story, photo, and anything else you would like to share to our Artistic Director, Nicole Caracia at Ncaracia@chesapeakearts.org
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Patricia Barland Gallery I June 24- August 30, 2026
Reception: June 25, 2026 6-8 pm
As part of the Chesapeake Arts Center’s 25th Anniversary celebration, the Light exhibition will feature an exploration of light as both a medium and concept, and artwork that glows under a UV/blacklight. CAC has illuminated pathways for artistic expression and community connection over the past 25 years, and Light is essential to how we experience art—it shapes perception, highlights detail, and creates atmosphere—but it also symbolizes something larger: clarity, possibility, and forward movement. This exhibition invites artists to step into a reimagined space—one that symbolizes innovation, experimentation, and the evolving future of the arts at CAC. In this exhibition, what was once unseen becomes visible, reminding us that the future is not fixed, but something we create together.
Light is both a celebration and a reflection—an invitation to celebrate who we are, deepen community connection, and imagine what’s next. The Light Exhibition will be on display in CAC’s Patricia Barland Gallery from June 24-August 30, 2026.
Deadline for exhibition applications - Friday, May 29, 2026. For more information and where to apply, please see link below -
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June 24 – August 30, 2026
Hal Gomer & Patricia Barland GalleriesReception: June 25, 2026 6-8 pm
As part of the Chesapeake Arts Center’s 25th Anniversary celebration, the Legacy Exhibition honors the artists, stories, and creative vision that have shaped CAC over the past quarter century—while looking ahead to the next generation of artistic expression.
The Legacy Exhibition brings together past CAC artists working in a wide range of disciplines, including oil, photography, ceramics, woodworking, textiles, mixed media, watercolor, and acrylic. These works reflect the depth, diversity, and lasting impact of the artistic community that has grown alongside CAC since its founding in 2001.
Legacy is both a celebration and a reflection—an invitation to honor where we’ve been, celebrate who we are, deepen community connection, and imagine what’s next. The Legacy Exhibition will be on display in CAC’s Hal Gomer Gallery from June 24-August 30, 2026.
Deadline for both exhibition applications - Friday, May 29, 2026. For more information and where to apply, please see links below -As part of the Chesapeake Arts Center’s 25th Anniversary celebration, the Legacy Exhibition honors the artists, stories, and creative vision that have shaped CAC over the past quarter century—while looking ahead to the next generation of artistic expression.
The Legacy Exhibition brings together past CAC artists working in a wide range of disciplines, including oil, photography, ceramics, woodworking, textiles, mixed media, watercolor, and acrylic. These works reflect the depth, diversity, and lasting impact of the artistic community that has grown alongside CAC since its founding in 2001.
Legacy is both a celebration and a reflection—an invitation to honor where we’ve been, celebrate who we are, deepen community connection, and imagine what’s next. The Legacy Exhibition will be on display in CAC’s Hal Gomer Gallery from June 24-August 30, 2026.
Deadline for exhibition applications - Friday, May 29, 2026. For more information and where to apply, please see link below -
Thanks to the Arts Council of Anne Arundel County for their support of our 25th Anniversary Exhibitions.