FOR YOUR PATIENCE

Due to the complexity of our transition to a new membership database this past fall, we have experienced delays in processing membership cards. New membership cards may take up to 8 weeks to arrive by mail; however, we want you to know that memberships are current from the date you join or renew! Even without a new membership card, you may visit The Ringling as a current member!

Upon check-in, simply present a current photo ID, or your expired membership card, and you will have access to your current membership benefits.

We apologize for this delay and assure you that we value all the continued participation and support of our valued members. Thank you for your patience, and we look forward to seeing you at The Ringling soon!

Member News

LOOKING AHEAD...

An exciting lineup of programs and Member events is planned for this Fall! We hope you will join us for them, including the Member Preview events that will be held in mid-December when the exhibition Syd Solomon: Concealed and Revealed opens in the Searing Wing. Stay tuned!

FRIENDS EVENTS

These events are by invitation only.

Friends Of The Ringling Legacy

Making a Japanese Variant of Bonsai, Kokedama

MAY 10, 10:00 AM

Friends of the Ringling Legacy are invited to join Curator of the Rose Garden, Karen Smith, in the Dwarf Garden for a unique opportunity to build a kokedama.

Friends Of Art Of Our Time

Meet artist Natasha Mazurka

MAY 18, 10:30 AM

Friends of Art of Our Time are invited to attend the Viewpoint Lecture with artist Natasha Mazurka. Following the public lecture, there will be a private Friends reception with the artist.

Friends Of Asian Art

Meet artist Sun Xun

OCT 27

Friends of Asian Art will be offered the unique opportunity for a private meet and greet with artist Sun Xun, whose exhibition, Time Spy, will be on view August 11 – February 16.

Updated Friends Benefit

Beginning July 1 your Friends membership will be extended to include 2 members or 1 member + 1 guest. Annual Dues will remain $125 per Friends group, in addition to your regular Membership dues.

As a Friend, you will have unique opportunities to explore the areas specific to your chosen group and connect with our Curators and others who share similar interests. Enjoy special events and programs designed specifically for you!

For more information, or to join, call 941-360-7330, or contact membership@ringling.org.

Exhibition Preview

THE FABRIC OF INDIA

This exhibition illustrates the variety, technical sophistication, and adaptability of Indian textiles from the third to the twenty-first centuries.

THU, JUL 11, 5:30 – 9:00 PM

Circle Member Preview and Dinner

We are extending an invitation to our Supporting and Partner Members to join our Circle Members as we preview the exhibition before it opens to the public. This event is by invitation only.

SAT, JUL 13, 10:00 AM – NOON

Member Preview Day

All Members are invited to preview new exhibitions before they open to the public. Join us for family activities, catered refreshments, and an additional 5% discount at the Museum Store!

In Memory

We have been saddened by the recent loss of so many of our colleagues, friends, and donors. Each one of them brought their passion, enthusiasm, and dedication to The Ringling.

We are fortunate they crossed our paths and left us with lasting memories. We are grateful to have known them. They touched our lives. They inspire us each day.

Nancy Cook

Harriett “Goody” Hirshfeld

Martha Church

Madeline Berman

Priscilla Greenfield

The only thing you take with you when you’re gone is what you leave behind.

~ John Allston

Eleanor Merritt Darlington

Eleanor Merritt

Darlington was born in Harlem, New York City, the youngest of five children born to Jamaican immigrants. A trained and passionate artist, Eleanor learned from such luminaries as Ad Reinhardt, Mark Rothko, and James Ernst. She was the first African-American art teacher and department chair in the Nassau County district in New York. Eleanor was a Ringling docent for 25 years, and served on The John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art Board of Directors.

David F. Bolger

David F. Bolger of Longboat Key, Florida, and Ridgewood, New Jersey, passed away peacefully with his family by his side. David was a graduate of the University of Pittsburgh, an Air Force Veteran, and served as Chairman of Bolger and Company for 41 years. The Bolger family members have been longtime supporters of The Ringling, naming the David F. Bolger Playspace, the David F. Bolger Campiello and Promenade, and the Bolger Family Reflecting Pool.

BED-TAX REVENUES | SUPPORTING THE RINGLING SINCE 1993

For a number of years, exhibitions and performances at The Ringling have been supported by the Tourist Development Cultural/Arts Program grant. Commonly referred to as the TDC or TDC/A grant, this program is managed in its preaward stages by the Arts and Cultural Alliance of Sarasota County, and in the post-award period by Sarasota County government. Funds for the grant program are generated through the collection of tourist-taxes from hotels and seasonal rentals. (The next time you splurge on that beach stay-cation, you can feel a little less guilty!).

The Alliance was founded in 1986, and the organization's role as an advocate for the arts took off in 1988, when it lobbied to have a portion of the county hotel bed-tax revenues allocated to support local arts and cultural organizations.

The administration of the tax funds is the responsibility of the Alliance, and thus the TDC/A grant program was born. Funding from the grant is used for marketing and program costs for arts and cultural programming that attracts tourists to the area in an effort to maintain Sarasota’s reputation as a national arts destination. Since 1993, The Ringling has been awarded over $750,000 through the TDC/A grant program, and this generous funding has provided vital support by aiding the marketing costs of the Art of Performance program, and providing assistance with the high costs of performer contract fees. In recent years, grant funds have also been used for marketing costs, materials, and supplies for major exhibitions, including A Feast of the Senses, Knights, and the upcoming The Fabric of India

We are thrilled to welcome new staff members to The Ringling family and to see long-time staff grow into new roles at the Museum. Newest to the curatorial team, this spring Elizabeth Doud became the inaugural Currie-Kohlmann Curator of Performance. Elizabeth comes to Sarasota from Miami, and as a performing arts professional has focused on environmental issues and international cultural exchange with Latin America. Mark Smith joined the marketing and communications department as Marketing Director this winter, returning to his museum roots after a five-year hiatus in marketing for higher education institutions in Texas. Last fall, we welcomed James Ingram as the Assistant Director of Visitor Services after specializing in visitor services for Disney World and Disney Cruises.

You may have noticed that some staff members have taken on new roles at the Museum: Jennifer Lemmer Posey became the Tibbals Curator of Circus after first entering the world of circus history at the Museum in 2002. Heidi Connor is the new Chief Archivist after joining archives staff in 2011. Laura Steefel-Moore is now Head of Educational Programs after joining the education department in 2015.