Mission

The mission of the Kimmel Harding Nelson Center for the Arts is to support established and emerging writers, visual artists and composers by providing working and living environments that allow uninterrupted time for work, reflection and creative growth and to present and support arts-related programming that expands public awareness and appreciation of the arts

In addition to living and studio space for five artists, the Kimmel Harding Nelson houses a gallery that features exhibitions by regional visual artists.

Artists-in-residence periodically offer public talks, performances, exhibitions, or presentations, and the Center frequently invites the public to Open Studio events to interact with resident artists. The Kimmel Harding Nelson cooperates with other organizations to bring the arts, art appreciation, and art education to the public.

Facility

The building at 801 Third Corso that houses the Kimmel Harding Nelson Center for the Arts was completed in 1969 as a luxury communal dwelling for several leading citizens of Nebraska City, a purpose it served for three decades before its conversion, in 2001, to the Arts Center.

Inspired by the prairie architecture of Frank Lloyd Wright, architect Burkett Graf created an elegant design making the building itself an artistic expression of graceful living. With broad overhangs to shelter windows and enclosed courtyards from harsh weather, southern exposures to bedrooms and living rooms, and an openness that bridges the barriers between the structure and its natural setting, the Kimmel Harding Nelson Center offers artist-residents exceptional comfort.

Essential amenities for resident-artists, such as a grocery store and pharmacy, are within walking distance, and the Center maintains two bicycles for residents' use. For those bringing cars, off-street parking is provided.

Visual artists work in one of three studios, two of which are approximately 425 square feet and one that is 258 square feet.

Composers are provided a studio with an upright piano.

Private writer’s studios are located in two of the apartments.

The building and grounds have wi-fi high speed internet access.

The Center houses residents in one of three apartments. Two apartments feature two bedrooms, two baths, a large living room, a balcony, dining room, full kitchen, and writer’s studio (den). The third apartment is a one-person efficiency.

Residents share the use of a private landscaped walled courtyard.

The facility's lower level contains laundry facilities and a lounge with a television, DVD/VCR player, phone, and communal computer.

The facility is fully heated and air conditioned.

Setting

Nebraska City, a quiet river community nestled along the Missouri River, is steeped in natural beauty and a sense of living history. With 6,500 residents, tree-shaded cobbled streets, and elegant Victorian homes, Nebraska City has much to offer the creative spirit.

Even before western settlement, Native Americans and early explorers and traders knew the beauty and importance of southeast Nebraska. The Otoe tribe settled and traveled through the region, and Lewis and Clark described Nebraska City's current location as the "ideal site for a future city," situated on the table land between two small streams that wound their way to the Missouri.

Nebraska City is known to conservationists around the world as the birthplace of Arbor Day and is a cherished destination for thousands of guests who come to celebrate Arbor Day every spring and the harvest celebration, Apple Jack, every fall. The Arbor Day Foundation owns and operates Arbor Day Farm as an educational and agro-forestry demonstration facility that welcomes hundreds of thousands of visitors each year. In keeping with its mission, the Foundation operates the Morton Orchards, including a Preservation Orchard that is home to 165 varieties of "antique" apples.

Fifty miles to the north is metropolitan Omaha, home to 750,000 people, a major airport, more than 500 restaurants, the Henry Doorly Zoo, the University of Nebraska at Omaha, The Old Market, The College World Series, Creighton University, and numerous arts events and venues including the Nebraska Shakespeare Festival, the beautifully restored Orpheum Theatre, the Joslyn Art Museum, the Holland Performing Arts Center, Film Streams Non-profit Cinema, and the Bemis Center for Contemporary Art.

Fifty miles west is Nebraska's capital city, Lincoln. Home to the University of Nebraska. many museums and restaurants, an airport, the Folsom Children's Zoo, Great Plains Art Collection, the Haymaket downtown district, the Mary Riepma Ross Theater, and the Sheldon Memorial Art Gallery, Lincoln offers many other cultural amenities and opportunities and its own brand of easy charm.

Peru State College is twenty-one miles south and Brownville, thirty-four miles south. Both offer cultural events regularly.

Hours

The Center is open to the public Monday through Thursday 9 to 4 p.m. and by appointment.

We encourage appointments!

Please call 402.874.9600 or e-mail info@khncenterforthearts.org.

The Kimmel Foundation

The Kimmel Harding Nelson Center for the Arts is funded through the generous support of the The Richard P. Kimmel and Laurine Kimmel Charitable Foundation.

Incorporated in 1988, the spirit of the Kimmel Foundation, however, can be traced back to the Kimmels’ farm and orchard near Nebraska City, to their lifelong commitment to agricultural education and research, and to their many years of civic charity and leadership.

The Kimmel Foundation supports proposals that contribute to an organization’s mission and service and offer leadership particularly in the areas of Education, Arts, Agriculture, Humanities and Human Services.

The Richard P. Kimmel and Laurine Kimmel Charitable Foundation, Inc. is a private philanthropic foundation created by Richard P. Kimmel and his wife, Laurine Kimmel. It became active after Richard Kimmel's death in 1996.

For more information, please visit the Foundation's web site: http://www.kimmelfoundation.org

Board of Directors

Ken Anderson
Santiago Cal
Gary Day
Pat Holmes
Lu Marcotte
Joe Ruffo, Board President
Susie Wirth
Suzanne Wise

Staff

Denise Brady, Executive Director
Pat Friedli, Assistant Director