The Greenwich Arts Council was incorporated as a 501©(3) non-profit arts organization in 1973. It was formed as a direct outcome of the 1971 Development Action Plan of the Town of Greenwich which identified the need to develop greater encouragement of, and access to, the arts in the Town and surrounding area. Initially located in space at the Greenwich Library, GAC moved in 1980 to occupy the second and third floors of the Old Town Building on Greenwich Avenue in the heart of the downtown business district where it created an Arts Center for its own programs and those of other arts organizations in Greenwich.

It is the Mission of the Greenwich Arts Council to promote the visual, performing and literary arts in our community by encouraging artists, presenting their work and building audiences for the arts.

To fulfill this Mission GAC:

- Offers programs that showcase the vibrancy and broad range of the arts
- Is receptive to new forms of artistic expression
- Provides opportunities to support artists’ development
- Recognizes outstanding artistic accomplishment and those who support the arts
- Enhances arts education and outreach for young people
- Collaborates on arts-related projects with other organizations
- Provides studios, exhibition and performance space for individual artists and groups
- Engages in outreach to bring the arts to diverse audiences, seniors and the handicapped
- Promotes the preservation and appreciation of public art
- Serves as a resource for information about area artists and cultural events
- Advocates on behalf of the arts at the local, state and federal levels
- Educates the public about the arts

In addition to organizing and presenting its own programs and providing low cost rental space for a broad range of visual and performing arts, the Greenwich Arts Council leases administrative and performance space at the Arts Center to the following resident cultural organizations.