Some of those who helped gather art for the Allen House’s Inaugural collection: from left, James Dyment and Michael Lally of the Whistler House Museum of Art; Prof. Emerita Mary Blewett; Lewis Karabatsos of the Lowell Art Association; Lois Nangle of University Advancement; and Public Affairs artist Victoria Dalis.

Allen House, the grand old, Italianate-style building on UML South, now in its new role as the Chancellor’s office and meeting rooms, is debuting as the seat of an extraordinary collection — probably never before equaled on campus — of photography and art.

For longer than a month now, a team of artists, archivists and curators from across all disciplines and campus departments have been pooling their talents to bring together this remarkable compilation of work — going back more than a century, more than 40 pieces in all.

The official unveiling took place on Tuesday, March 31, when 10 paintings, six long-archived Allen family photos, 18 photographic images from the Chancellor’s public life, and seven before-and-after photo-collages depicting campus life were showcased throughout the Allen House interior, timed to coincide with the outset of the University’s Inaugural Week.

Perhaps the rarest and most striking of the works are the 10 paintings, culled from a group of 28 long archived in Lowell’s Whistler House Museum of Art. The paintings, all works by Allen patriarch Charles Herbert Allen (1848-1934), include several 19th- and 20th-century New England seascapes and landscapes. Displayed in the building’s Spinoza Gallery, they were selected, collected and hung through the combined efforts of Michael H. Lally and James Dyment, executive director and gallery exhibits manager of the Whistler House; Lewis Karabatsos of the Lowell Art Association; graphic designer Victoria Dalis of the UMass Lowell Public Affairs Office and Lois Nangle of University Advancement.

The six archived, black-and-white Allen family photos, contributed from the album of former family caretaker Walter Hayes by his son Robert, include images of family members, as well as of the Allen House gardens, and of the house itself, taken during the period (1890-1934) of Charles Allen’s ownership. They hang on the walls of the house’s sun porch, and were collected under the guidance of Martha Mayo of the Center for Lowell History.

The 18 photographic images of Marty Meehan’s public life —  photos of several U.S. presidents, congressmen and world leaders, including Bill Clinton, George H.W. Bush, Tip O’Neill and Tony Blair — are displayed prominently in the downstairs parlor and corridor. They were gathered and culled with the assistance of Elaine Dalton of the University Advancement Office; Victoria Dalis; Tony Sampas, 5th District Congressional archivist; and Emily Byrne, director of the Advancement Office’s annual fund. 

And finally, the seven before-and-after images of University Life — showing contrasts between photos of students in the early 20th century with those of today, attending classes, recording music and playing basketball — hang in the Allen House conference room, and were prepared with the aid of Martha Mayo and Victoria Dalis.