Kathleen Reckling named to lead ArtsWestchester, succeeding Janet Langsam

Peter D. Kramer, Rockland/Westchester Journal News

WHITE PLAINS – ArtsWestchester, the county's grant-giving arts incubator, searched the country for a successor to longtime CEO Janet Langsam, and found one right at home: Chief Operating Officer Kathleen Reckling will succeed Langsam on July 1.

“It’s a great honor to take on this incredible leadership position at ArtsWestchester, an organization that is deeply respected and that has significant personal meaning for me,” said Reckling. She called this "an exceptionally dynamic time for the arts in the lower Hudson Valley, with a booming creative workforce and unbounded vision among our many new and established cultural organizations."

Exit interview: ArtsWestchester's Janet Langsam to retire: After 33 years, $75M raised

Reckling has brought a vision of her own to high-profile projects since joining the arts umbrella in 2011. Among them:

  • “Metropolis Sunrise,” Amanda Browder’s design achieved by 1,000 volunteers, despite a pandemic pause, bathed the façade of ArtsWestchester’s downtown White Plains building in six stories of fabric.

  • Serious Fun Arts Fest, a public art festival that joined forces with ArtsWestchester, I Love NY, the City of White Plains, the White Plains BID, and nearly a dozen developers.

  • Cuomo Bridge arts, in collaboration with the Thruway Authority and Arts Council of Rockland, she commissioned 10 works of art to adorn the 3-mile span between Westchester and Rockland counties.

  • “Peaceful Journey,” a two-story sculpture by Eto Otitigbe at 42 Broad St., in Mount Vernon, a monument to hip-hop artist and Mount Vernon resident Heavy D.

Reckling also served as ArtsWestchester’s gallery director, securing National Endowment for the Arts funding. Her work during the pandemic put money in the pockets of struggling local artists, in the form of $500 grants from a COVID-19 Relief Fund she oversaw.

Kathleen Reckling has been named the new CEO of ArtsWestchester, effective July 1, 2024. Reckling has been with the grant-giving arts incubator since 2011, serving most recently as chief operating officer, alongside Janet Langsam, who leaves the group she has led for 33 years.
Kathleen Reckling has been named the new CEO of ArtsWestchester, effective July 1, 2024. Reckling has been with the grant-giving arts incubator since 2011, serving most recently as chief operating officer, alongside Janet Langsam, who leaves the group she has led for 33 years.

Marie Smith, president of the ArtsWestchester board of directors, praised Reckling's record of success and said her vision "will build on the organization’s notable legacy and further enhance ArtsWestchester’s mission to bring the arts to all Westchester residents.”

A lifelong Westchester resident who lives in Greenburgh, Reckling has a masters degree in art history and a bachelor's in economics, both from Columbia. She was an internationally ranked fencer who competed in two U.S. Olympic trials, an experience that just might come in handy when Reckling faces the give-and-take of lobbying the New York State Legislature for arts funding.

ArtsWestchester was founded in 1965 and provides and distributes grants to hundreds of Westchester artists and arts instutions. It also creates programs of its own, with art spaces and galleries in its downtown White Plains headquarters, a former bank building.

Langsam, who will become CEO emerita with Reckling's appointment, has shepherded the arts organization for 33 years and raised $75 million for arts groups.

Reach Peter D. Kramer at pkramer@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: Kathleen Reckling to succeed Janet Langsam as ArtsWestchester CEO

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