PaintingsDirect.com - People in the Arts

by Candace Worth

Robert, a Dancer		President of the prestigious Catherine Lorillard Wolfe Art Club (CLWAC) since 1998, Amy Bright Unfried helps to continue the long-standing tradition of Catherine Lorillard Wolfe (an early 20th century philanthropist and a woman ahead of her time) promoting women in the arts. Although not originally an artist (her background was actually in economics and finance), Unfried took a sculpture class at SUNY Purchase in Upstate New York and didn't look back. After studying at The National Academy of Design, Unfried continued to sculpt, entering her first juried exhibition at the CLWAC in 1991. Now she sits on the Board of this national organization of over 300 professional women artists which showcases an Annual Juried Exhibition and a Members' Exhibition each year. The Annual Juried Exhibition is held each October at the incredible National Arts Club in New York City's Gramercy Park neighborhood and is open to the public. A panel of artists and curators from outside the club make up the Jury of Awards.
After an artist has been accepted into three Annual Exhibitions within a ten year period, she is invited to apply for full membership into the CLWAC, and her work is reviewed by the Club's Board of Directors for final acceptance. Unfried oversees this process whereby hundreds of works in various media are submitted, judged and installed.
Unfried explains that when the CLWAC was initially founded, it quickly became a haven for women artists in New York; moral support and hot meals were the primary draw. 100 years later, the opportunity to exhibit their work to the public in such a beautiful and historically notable exhibition space really distinguishes the group from many other arts organizations.
Asked what the Club really provides now for women artists, Unfried remarked that "If anyone thinks that women only paint puppies and florals, this group definitely proves them wrong!" And what about the end of the century and the ascension of the Internet? Anything that broadens the opportunity for women artists to have their work seen and appreciated is just fine with her.