FACILITIES
The Lyme Academy of Fine Arts stands on four idyllic acres in the heart of Old Lyme, Connecticut. The natural beauty of our campus reflects an appreciation of the historic architecture of our setting and the needs of the modern working artist. At the center is the John Sill House, built in 1817 and purchased and adapted for the Academy in 1984. Our 10,000-square-feet of north-light studios, individually designed for drawing, painting, sculpture, casting, and print-making, a designated museum-quality art gallery with over 1000 square feet of exhibition space, a 15,000 volume fine arts library, and a café, all built specifically for the Academy and its students, are the focal points of our campus. Filled with light and charged with energy, our facilities, like our mission, remember our past and are ready for the future.
Southwick-Keller Studio
Named after Deane G. Keller, one of the Academy’s most influential and beloved teachers, and Dr. Wayne Southwick, a benefactor of the Academy and a board chair, the soaring skylit ceiling and expansive space of the Southwick-Keller Studio provide students with the freedom to set up their easels and work without distraction in the community of their peers.
Chandler Studio
The dramatic skylights, north-light windows, and 18-foot ceilings of the Academy’s principal art studios were the vision of Elisabeth Gordon Chandler, the founder of the Lyme Academy of Fine Arts and the artist for whom this studio was named. The Chandler Studio is the largest single studio on our campus, and, with its 1600-square-foot skylit interior, among the most impressive.
Weir Studio
Dedicated to the American Impressionist artist Julian Alden Weir and the Weir family, members of whom later lived in Old Lyme, this studio provides students with a space as functional as it is inspiring. Unique to the Weir Studio is the sloping window, which showers the interior with a vast and brilliant swathe of northern light.
Stobart Studio
The row of north-light windows and barn doors that feature in this studio’s design make clear the matchless beauty of our working environment. Named for the artist and Academy patron John Stobart, this studio offers over 1000 square feet of illuminated space.
Griswold Printmaking Studio
Our 1150-square-foot, north-light printmaking studio is equipped with four presses, including a Charles Brand etching press. Relief printing (woodcut, linocut), drypoint, collagraph, monotype/monoprint, and intaglio are all possible in this state-of-the-art space.
Sill House
One of three iconic buildings on Lyme Street designed by Samuel Belcher, the John Sill House (1817) was home to a wealthy New England merchant. Its Federalist-style facade, with its symmetry, classical detail, and center hall plan, reflects the prevailing trends in American architecture of this period. Belcher’s striking workmanship can also be seen at the nearby Florence Griswold House, the center of the Lyme Art Colony and the Home of American Impressionism.
Krieble Fine Arts Library
With over 15,000 curated volumes of fine arts books, our Library offers our students the opportunity to learn about the history and techniques of their craft, and provides a comfortable spot to relax and enjoy a book. Overlooking a beautiful garden patio, accessible from the library, rows of windows bring the natural beauty of our campus in. The Krieble Gallery at the nearby Florence Griswold Museum was named for the same philanthropic family.
