Next Wednesday, Mayor Tecklenburg will issue a proclamation officially declaring March 14 as William Halsey and Corrie McCallum Day in Charleston. The announcement, part of the Halsey Institute’s celebration honoring the couple, recognizes the invaluable contributions that the two made within the Charleston art community.
William Halsey and Corrie McCallum, after settling in Charleston in 1942, were not only renowned artists in their own right but were also pioneers in the city, particularly in the College of Charleston’s art department.
McCallum was the first educator to teach printmaking at CofC. She also worked as an educator at Savannah’s Telfair Museum of Art, the Gibbes Museum of Art, and Newberry College. During her time at the Gibbes, she helped conduct the first comprehensive art appreciation program for public schools in Charleston County.
Halsey, like his wife, also was an educator; in 1964, he was the first to teach a studio art course and formed the Studio Arts program at College of Charleston, where he continued to teach for 20 years. After his retirement in 1984, the College’s art gallery, now the Halsey Institute of Contemporary Art, was named in his honor.
The Institute hopes to share the progressive legacy of Halsey and McCallum with the next generation of Charleston artists. The event, featuring presenters and a reception, is open to Halsey Institute members and CofC students.
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