20 North Gallery is the oldest independent gallery in Toledo, Ohio, founded in 1993. The premier commercial gallery of the Toledo area, 20 North Gallery is owned by the longtime supporter of the arts and downtown developer Eric Hillenbrand and is under the direction of Art Director Condessa Croninger, with daily operations by Gallery Manager Anastasia Wagner.
20 North Gallery celebrated 30 years of representing art and artists from the region and around the world with a May 19, 2023 reception showcasing the gallery’s special anniversary exhibition, 20 North / 30 Years. This group show featured the work of eleven distinguished artists whose work has made a profound impact on the 20 North identity, as well as the greater-Toledo region.
Prior to this milestone, for many years, 20 North Gallery benefited from the the guidance of late Art Director Emerita Margaret “Peggy” Brennan Grant (1929-2019), the founder of the 20 North Gallery brand identity. Peggy Grant’s influential career in the arts included her own works of fine art painting, her work as a national artists’ agent and her curatorial positions for numerous regional institutions, including the Sculpture Garden of Ottawa Hills, Ohio; the Schedel Arboretum & Gardens in Elmore, Ohio and the creation of the corporate collections of Toledo Hospital (now ProMedica) and the Fortune 500 Owens-Illinois Corporation. Among the many arts professionals mentored by Grant is Condessa Croninger, an artist and artist-educator working with many arts and cultural institutions in the Toledo region since 1990. In 2008, Croninger succeeded Grant in the directorship of 20 North Gallery.
20 North Gallery is committed to providing emerging and established fine artists with a commercial venue to display and sell their work, bringing art, arts experiences and the benefits of collecting art to the greater-Toledo community. 20 North Gallery represents both traditional and contemporary artists working in a variety of media, and offers patrons residential and office consultations for art acquisition, placement and installation.
Over the past three decades, 20 North Gallery has orchestrated many ground-breaking shows, including:
- The Baltimore Realists, 1997 (continuing to Midwest Museum of American Art, Elkhart, Indiana; The Butler Institute of American Art, Salem, Ohio; Evergreen House, Baltimore, Maryland; Washington County Museum of Fine Arts, Hagerstown, Maryland);
- Women of Valor: Athena Art Society Centennial Exhibit, 2003 (continuing to the Toledo Museum of Art, Toledo, Ohio; Ohio State House, Columbus);
- Adam Grant: Figure Master / Unseen Treasures, 2004 – 2005 (continuing to the Toledo Museum of Art; University of Toledo, Ohio; Collegius Maiues, Krakow, Poland);
- Tom & Friends, 2012, memorial exhibition for studio glass pioneer Tom McGlauchlin with work by fellow founders of the movement, including Harvey Littleton and Dominick Labino (in conjunction with the international Glass Arts Society (GAS) conference, on the 50th anniversary of the Studio Glass movement);
- The Annual Black History Month Exhibit, 1996 – 2013 (the longest-running, annual Black History Month event in Toledo).
20 North Gallery is proud to represent artists across the United States and Europe, as well as those from Northwest Ohio—specializing in established/museum-collected regional artists. In 2016, 20 North Gallery was honored to be selected by the late Peggy Grant to serve as estate representatives for the Adam & Peggy Grant Art Estate.
20 North Gallery is located in the heart of the historic Warehouse District in downtown Toledo, across from 5/3 Field, at 18 N. St. Clair Street, Toledo, Ohio 43604. Gallery hours are Wednesday through Saturday, noon to 4 p.m. and by appointment: 419-241-2400 / info@20northgallery.com