The (Original) Forsythe Gallery

The Forsythe Gallery was a prominent fine art gallery in Ann Arbor, Michigan, known for being the city’s first of its kind. It was founded in 1946 by Jessie W. Forsythe, initially operating out of her home before moving in 1956 to a permanent location in the historic Nickels Arcade near the University of Michigan campus. The gallery played a significant role in Ann Arbor’s cultural scene, exhibiting a wide range of art including oils, watercolors, acrylics, prints, ceramics, and etchings by both local and international artists.

Jessie W. Forsythe, a University of Michigan graduate, managed the gallery until her retirement, at which point she sold it to Dan De Graaf in 1972. Under De Graaf’s leadership, the gallery continued to expand its reputation, eventually moving to Saugatuck and later evolving into the Armstrong-DeGraaf Gallery, which still operates in West Michigan. The Forsythe Gallery was especially notable for its early support of contemporary and international art, including Mexican artists from the Rupture Generation as early as the 1950s.

The gallery remained a fixture in Ann Arbor’s art community until it closed in the mid-1980s. Its legacy endures through its successors and the many artists and collectors it supported over its nearly four decades of operation.

The Ann Arbor (Michigan) District Library has many items of local history mentioning the Forsythe Gallery https://aadl.org/search/community/forsythe%20gallery .