The KIA’s history is rich with remarkable men and women who, through their sheer grit and determination, guided us from a rented room in the YWCA to the “Best Art Institute between Detroit and Chicago.” 

Jim Carter, past president of the board of directors and current docent, will present KIA history in a series of vignettes about the individuals, often women, who led this journey, and the events which defined us. Learn about Blanche Hull, the first board president, and her vision for the art center. Meet  our first patron, Anna Louise Raymond. Hear about the origin of the “Clothesline Art Show.” Revisit some of the blockbuster exhibitions from our past.     

Dr. Carter is a retired physician who had a clinical practice of Internal Medicine in Kalamazoo for 36 years, also serving as an Associate Professor for MSU-CHM and Program Director of Internal Medicine for MSU-KCMS. He has been involved with the KIA for more than four decades.