OPEN DOOR GALLERY @ WAM

Located inside the worcester art museum

Designed as a partnership between Worcester Art Museum, Seven Hills Foundation, and Open Door Arts,
ODG@WAM is a working studio and gallery that exhibits and celebrates the work of aspiring, emerging and established artists with disabilities, acting as a catalyst for community convening and conversation with the museum and beyond.

CURRENT EXHIBIT

"Shared" 

On view: March 11, 2025-May 22nd, 2025

Exhibit Opening: 4:30 pm - 7 pm Thursday April 17th, 2025

Show Description 

Shared, features the work of eight disabled artists from Massachusetts: Alana Guarino, Chenda Cope, DaNice D. Marshall, Liz Doles, Judith Klausner, Mika Cook-Wright, Ọmọlará Williams McCallister, and Sophie Pearson.
This exhibition delves into the theme of sharing through the artists' experiences, materials, and processes. Through painting, fiber, sound, drawing, and performance, these artists articulate themes of community, grief, identity, ecologies, interdependence, and much more.
The opening will feature a performance by Chenda Cope and artist remarks from DaNice D. Marshall, Liz Doles, Judith Klausner, and Sophie Pearson.

 

Fabric squares dyed with Indigo against a felt wall. Dyed into the squares is the text "For Me", "For You", or "For Us".
"Domestic Work" by Ọmọlará Williams McCallister
A close up portrait of a woman with pink sink tones and brown hair wearing red lipstick, a shadow crosses the middle of her face.
"Lipstick on a Pig" by Sophie Pearson
This painting features a group of 5, 4 people with brown skin and one with pale skin, all in colorful clothing. They are smiling, mouths open while singing together.
"Singing, Swinging, and Being Joyful" by DaNice D. Marshall.
5 rows of three dimensional white paper mached bottles affixed to a wall
"Empties" by Chenda Cope

AUDIO TOUR

Below is an audio tour that contains descriptions of the larger series in the exhibitions, reflections from the artists about the art, and image descriptions of all the artworks in order of appearance in the gallery.  

 

 

 

 

 

GALLERY COMMITTEE

in 2024, to ensure that multiple voices inform our vision and decision-making, we created a paid Gallery Committee to help design and juror calls for art and advise on best practices to create an accessible, inclusive and representative gallery space.  Along with their guidance, we are also forming deeper relationships with disabled artists throughout the state, disability organizations, and the broader community.

The committee includes Jeff Kasper, Gordon Sasaki, and Dominic Quagliozzi (who all identify as disabled artists), Megan Bent (Open Door Arts Gallery and Communications Manager) and Samantha Cataldo (Curator of Contemporary Art at WAM).

LOCATION AND HOURS

The Open Door Gallery @ WAM is located in the Higgins Education Wing of the Worcester Art Museum, at:
55 Salisbury Street
Worcester, MA 01609

Hours:
The gallery is open during regular museum hours,
Wednesday – Sunday: 10 am-4 pm
Third Thursday of every month: 10 am-8 pm

ACCESS

The Open Door Gallery @ WAM is located in the Higgins Education Wing of the Worcester Art Museum. The gallery can be accessed through the Lancaster Street entrance of WAM or through the Tuckerman Street entrance.

The gallery is at the end of the first floor of the Higgins Wing. During warmer months, it can also be accessed directly through the Lancaster courtyard, where there is a ramp and switch-operated double doors.

We are committed to making the gallery experience as accessible as possible by featuring tactile representations of artworks, large print and Braille signage and texts, audio description, and virtual alternatives, as well as providing ASL interpreters and sighted guides for all events. Please contact for access-related questions or requests.

We are proud to participate in the Card to Culture program, a collaboration between Mass Cultural Council and the Department of Transitional Assistance, Massachusetts Health Connector, and WIC Nutrition Program, by broadening accessibility to cultural programming.

Admissions to our Open Door Galleries and related events is free. EBT, WIC, and ConnectorCare cardholders will receive free admission to any ticketed events. See the full list of participating organizations offering EBT, WIC, and ConnectorCare discounts.