KENNESAW, Ga. | Oct 5, 2026

When Kennesaw State University opens the doors to its new gallery spaces in the Arts District at Chastain Pointe on October 24, the occasion represents more than just a physical expansion of the Geer College of the Arts. It stands as the culmination of a deep personal friendship, a lifelong passion for artistic mastery and extraordinary philanthropic vision.

The creation of the Emily Bourne Grigsby Gallery and the Athos Menaboni Gallery brings to fruition a transformative legacy bequest from the late Emily Bourne Grigsby, finalized through the dedicated stewardship of her estate’s executor, Alice Kuzniak. Together with $1 million in contributions from the Emily Bourne Grigsby estate and foundational support for the Athos Menaboni Art Fund from donors including June Boykin Tindall, this gift ensures that both historical mastery and future artistic generation will flourish under one roof. 

 

Emily Bourne Grigsby: A Renaissance Woman of Vision and Action

To understand the spirit behind these new spaces, it helps to know the remarkable woman who made them possible. Emily Bourne Grigsby (1922–2020) was an artist, lawyer, city planner, opera singer and pilot — a life defined as much by curiosity as by accomplishment.

Born in Owenton, Kentucky, to an artist mother and a publisher and lawyer father, Grigsby pursued interests that rarely fit within a single discipline. She earned a Bachelor of Arts from Mills College, a Master of Science in City Planning from the Georgia Institute of Technology, and a Juris Doctor from the Woodrow Wilson College of Law, alongside formal studies at the Atlanta College of the Arts. Professionally, she broke barriers as the first woman president of the Fulton County Grand Jury Association and served as an arbitrator for the New York Stock Exchange. Her personal pursuits were no less remarkable: she was an accomplished opera singer who performed with the San Francisco Opera Company, a licensed multi-engine pilot, an interior decorator, a model, and an accomplished painter whose works garnered acclaim across Georgia. Named a “Gracious Lady of Georgia” in 2004, Grigsby devoted her later years to extensive philanthropy supporting wildlife, education and the visual arts. 

Central to her artistic life was her deep admiration for her close friend, the legendary Georgia artist Athos Menaboni. Driven by a desire to preserve his genius and foster future artists, Grigsby donated two of Menaboni’s original paintings to KSU’s Zuckerman Museum of Art, helped establish the Athos Menaboni Art Fund, and endowed the Athos Menaboni Art Research Scholarship. Her historic final bequest now solidifies that legacy forever. 

 

Athos Menaboni: Capturing the Spirit of Nature

Born in Livorno, Italy, in 1895, Athos Rodolfo Giorgio Alessandro Menaboni (1895 – 1990) received formal art training at the Academy of Fine Arts in Florence before immigrating to the United States in 1921. Moving to Atlanta in 1927, he initially earned renown for architectural decorative painting, contributing to iconic landmarks such as the Swan House, the Rhodes-Haverty Building and the Atlanta Cyclorama restoration. 

However, Menaboni’s true calling emerged in the late 1930s when he began painting naturalistic studies of birds. Developing a signature “undercoat method” using thin layers of oil paint on paper, he achieved a translucent, intricate depth that captivated viewers and led Time magazine in 1950 to declare him the true heir to John James Audubon. His art caught the attention of prominent patrons, leading to a decade-long collaboration with Robert W. Woodruff and The Coca-Cola Company, national museum exhibitions, and the publication of the celebrated 1950 volume Menaboni's Birds. 

 

Two Spaces, One Continuum: The Impact on KSU

That legacy now takes physical form in two new galleries at the heart of Kennesaw State’s growing Arts District. Though they share a home, each tells a different part of the story.

The Emily Bourne Grigsby Gallery looks to nurture current and future generations. Conceived as a flexible and evolving space, it will come alive through the work of students, faculty, and resident artist from the School of Art and Design. Just steps away, the Athos Menaboni Gallery looks to an enduring artistic legacy, creating a permanent place to encounter the life and work of one of Georgia’s most celebrated artists. Rotating exhibitions drawn from KSU’s permanent collection and private loans will continually bring new perspectives to Menaboni’s work.

That conversation between past and future begins this fall with Woven Reflections. Its opening marks more than the arrival of a new exhibition. The College honors the supporters and university leaders, whose vision and generosity have created a lasting place for art to be created and treasured.