Established in 2016 by Al Shands, Great Meadows Foundation is a non-profit organization created to critically strengthen and support visual art in Kentucky by empowering our community’s artists and other visual arts professionals to research, connect, and participate more actively in the broader contemporary art world.

The foundation was named after the Crestwood, Kentucky home built by Al Shands (1928-2021) and his wife Mary Norton Shands (1930-2009) in 1986 to house their growing contemporary art collection. The couple had begun collecting in earnest earlier that decade when Mary was asked to head the Kentucky Art and Craft Foundation (now KMAC Contemporary Art Museum). Starting with regional ceramics, Al and Mary quickly progressed to acquiring works by nationally and internationally known figures, building relationships with noted artists, curators, and gallerists in the process.

At Great Meadows, Al and Mary had the space to expand their collection with a focus on sculpture and outdoor works that emphasized relationships with architecture, nature, and mystery, commissioning works by Maya Lin, Ursula von Rydingsvard, and Sol LeWitt, among others. They took joy in opening their home to others, hosting parties and dinners and welcoming anyone with an interest in contemporary art. 

After Mary passed away in 2009, Al continued their passion for collecting with a vigor, commissioning and acquiring large-scale works for the back meadow, including those by Alex Hartley, Eva Rothschild, Ernesto Neto, and Monika Sosnowska. He also took a renewed interest in the artists of the region: visiting their studios, acquiring their work, and creating the Great Meadows Foundation to support the continued growth and flourishing of contemporary art in Kentucky.

Al died in 2021, just short of his 93rd birthday. While he bequeathed all the works in his collection (with the exception of the seven major sculptures in the back fields) to museums in Kentucky, he left a generous endowment to the Great Meadows Foundation, which continues to support the Kentucky artist community through grants, programming, and institutional partnerships. To date, the foundation has given more than $1.25 million in grants to nearly 300 Kentucky artists and curators, supporting travel to more than 40 different countries.