Our History

In 1987, the arts community of North Louisiana sought to form a regional arts center and a gallery for local artists to display and sell their work, forming NCLAC, which was originally housed in the historic Harris Hotel.  There, NCLAC held its first art gallery, the Piney Hills Gallery, in 1989. By 1990, NCLAC hired its first full-time Executive Director, Scott Hutcheson, who developed the first iteration of what are now its Summer Arts Camps.

     NCLAC’s partnership with the non-profit Dixie Center for the Arts began in 1998, with the goal of acquiring and restoring Ruston’s historic Dixie Theater.  Today, NCLAC’s office and gallery are still located in the Dixie Theater, where it continues to partner with other non-profit arts organizations associated with the Dixie, serving Lincoln, Bienville, Claiborne, Jackson, and Union Parishes.