Community Profiles

MA-NMWA Advisory Council Member
Arlette Kayafas

Establishing Gallery Kayafas in 2003 was the culmination of years of reflection and aspiration for Arlette Kayafas. A woman who came to appreciate the power of visual art as she navigated high school (where she met her husband, renowned photograph printer and collector Gus Kayafas) and college, she at first found herself in a supporting role. She was a "student wife," she says, to Gus as he studied at MIT with photographer-educators Minor White and Harold "Doc" Edgerton. When their children were young, Arlette was active in community programs and local schools, where her leadership talent emerged.

After Edgerton passed away in 1990, Arlette transferred his library and personal objects to MIT; she then cared for his wife. Arlette recalls that this latter experience led to a rewarding career as companion to elderly women in assisted living--educated women who, she says, welcomed her into their intellectual circle as an equal and prompted her to consider her own future. "When my last client died," she says, "I wanted to make something open, not ending. Something lasting." That, for Arlette, would have to have something to do with art.

By this time she and Gus had amassed a powerful collection of some 12,000 carefully curated photographs. There was nothing to do but find ways to show and perhaps sell them, and to offer other artists a venue unlike any other in Boston at the time. And so Arlette founded Gallery Kayafas.

Within a few years Arlette began to integrate the work of other visual artists as well. This change was marked by her increasing confidence that she had “…something to say … not just photography. I have only shown work that I want to own … that prompts interesting conversations.” Speaking of her interest in “strong voices” of women and others, she notes that when she shows certain artists her goal is that “I might change how you thought … [the work] makes you aware of what it’s like to be transgendered, to be from an immigrant family …  your life [becomes] broader, brighter.” This spirit connected Arlette to MA-NMWA, working with the organization since 2008 and supporting the Women to Watch program.

Arlette retired at the end of Summer 2024, much to the chagrin of the many members of the creative community with which she has connected. Asked to advise visual artists eager to gain an audience for their work, Arlette offers: “There are so many wonderful artists to support. You have to pay your dues. Visit galleries. Introduce yourself to the staff and owner. Talk to them. Listen to them. Read about them and about the artists they represent. And keep in touch with them.”

MA-NMWA extends its heartfelt thanks and very best wishes to Arlette and Gus. We are fortunate indeed that she has agreed to remain a member of the Advisory Council, and we look forward to a continued active partnership in whatever she chooses to do next.