Milwaukee's historic Third Ward is not only listed on the National Register of Historic Places — it is also known as the city's Arts and Fashion District. A few minutes south of Downtown Milwaukee, the neighborhood is home to over 450 businesses, from restaurants and specialty shops to art galleries, spas, theaters and cafés, all housed in historic warehouses. And as this singular neighborhood continued to thrive, one of the first art galleries ever to take a chance on it closed its doors in July 2017, after thirty-seven years.
A pioneer among warehouses
The Katie Gingrass Gallery was a contemporary art and fine crafts gallery that opened in 1980, a pioneer in converting the former warehouse district into a vibrant, multi-cultural hub of entertainment and art. Gingrass represented a remarkably wide range of artists — local, national and international — and gave many of them their first opportunity to show their work at all. The gallery's displays were ever-changing: lithographs, landscapes, contemporary still-lifes, cityscapes, figures, oil paintings, abstract pieces, pastel drawings, sculpture, watercolors, photographs, fabric, enamel and glass.
Katie Gingrass was born in Galesburg, Illinois, in 1933. She opened the first Katie Gingrass Gallery at 241 N. Broadway, then relocated a short distance away to 207 E. Buffalo Street in 2013. At the time she was married to Rudy Gingrass, a plastic surgeon; though the couple had no children of their own, they adopted five — three girls and two boys. One of their daughters, Sarah Gingrass, told OnMilwaukee that the gallery was "a gem in the community."
Katie held a master's degree from the University of Michigan in language and speech development, but art was her true love. At one point she owned three galleries at once — in New Mexico, in California and in Milwaukee. The Katie Gingrass Gallery also hosted many special artist receptions, and was a regional leader in providing art services to corporate clients, commissioning original works of art tailored to each client's needs.
"I'm not an artist myself, but I always appreciated art very much and have many artist friends." — Katie Gingrass, in an interview with OnMilwaukee's senior writer Molly Snyder
Gingrass has since divorced and remarried, to Charlie Bay, and the two have moved around a bit on the East Side. At 84 years old, she decided it was time to close the gallery so she could spend more time reading and going out with friends. She admitted she was sad to see the gallery close, but treasured the many good memories it had given her over the years.
"I got to meet so many wonderful people and see so many beautiful works of art through the gallery." — Katie Gingrass
The ward she leaves behind
The Katie Gingrass Gallery played a major role in making the Third Ward the hub of artistic exhibition and activity in Milwaukee. The neighborhood has grown over the years and is now home to more than twenty art studios and galleries — Art Upstairs Gallery and Studio, Frank Juarez Gallery, Gallery 218, J. Nikolal Art, Portrait Society Gallery, San Remy Gallery, Timothy Cobb Fine Arts and Tory Follard Gallery, just to name a few. And the Third Ward's art culture goes beyond galleries and studios: it is also home to the Milwaukee Institute of Art and Design and the Broadway Theatre Center, where you'll find the Milwaukee Chamber Theatre, Renaissance Theatreworks and the world-famous Skylight Music Theatre.
The Third Ward today
- 20+ art studios and galleries in the district
- Home to the Milwaukee Institute of Art and Design
- Broadway Theatre Center: Milwaukee Chamber Theatre, Renaissance Theatreworks, Skylight Music Theatre
- Gallery Night and Day draws 5,000+ visitors quarterly
There are festivals and events all through the year celebrating the ward's artistic culture. Over 5,000 art lovers flock to the neighborhood quarterly for one of the Midwest's top art events, Gallery Night and Day. The Third Ward Art Festival, held annually in September, attracts over 140 artists — many of them local. Attendees enjoy an interactive setting where they can talk with the artists themselves and browse mixed media, glass jewelry, drawings, paintings, printmaking, photography, ceramics and woodwork, all of it for sale.
The Katie Gingrass Gallery had a great impact on the art world of Wisconsin and beyond, and it will surely be missed. But its legacy will always be felt — it helped transform a neighborhood of old, abandoned warehouses into a thriving cultural and artistic environment.