The Baker Museum has received a major gift to the museum’s permanent collection.
Longtime Naples residents and passionate collectors Dr. Laurence and Rita Sibrack have donated 74 works of contemporary glass and ceramics to the museum. The, which the museum calls “transformational,” includes works by 60 key figures in the studio glass movement, including Dale Chihuly, Amber Cowan, Preston Singletary, Judith Schaechter and Lucio Bubacco.
The donated pieces encompass every major process of glass and ceramic art, including flame-worked, blown and cast, and is distinguished by its rich focus on form, color, texture, shadow and the expressive power of light.
The Baker Museum will introduce the collection to the public in a dedicated exhibition during the upcoming 2025-26 season.
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“The Sibracks have long been valued supporters of Artis-Naples, and their contributions have enriched our organization in countless ways,” said Artis-Naples CEO and President Kathleen van Bergen. “Their decision to make Naples their home, inspired in part by the cultural vibrancy of Artis-Naples, is a testament to the lasting impact of our multidisciplinary mission. This remarkable gift deepens that legacy and reflects their unwavering commitment to contemporary art.”
Museum Director and Chief Curator Courtney McNeil echoed van Bergen’s sentiment.
“I am deeply grateful to the Sibracks for their generosity and for entrusting us with a collection of such remarkable depth,” said McNeil. ““For many years, glass and ceramics were often categorized separately from fine art, but that perception has evolved. With this gift from the Sibracks, we have an exciting opportunity to fully integrate these extraordinary works into our broad permanent collection - presenting them alongside painting, sculpture and other media to tell a more expansive and inclusive story of artistic expression.”
“Our passion for collecting art has contributed to our love for living with our art,” the Sibracks shared. “Seeing and experiencing the inaugural exhibition of Chihuly masterpieces at The Baker Museum in 2000 had a major influence on our decision to come to Naples. Our decision to donate our collection to this museum, in particular, was a natural evolution of our cultural commitment to the museum and to Artis-Naples. We hope that this contribution will allow the community of greater Naples and beyond to experience our passion for contemporary art made from glass and ceramic.”
The collection will be celebrated in the upcoming exhibition “The Passion of Collecting: Stories in Glass and Ceramics from the Sibrack Collection," opening January 10, 2026 at The Baker Museum and remaining on view through the fall.
The Baker Museum at Artis-Naples has long championed the studio glass movement, beginning with several major exhibitions and acquisitions of works by Dale Chihuly in the early 2000s.
The Sibrack Collection continues this tradition while offering fresh perspectives on the narrative and sculptural possibilities of glass and ceramics today.
Following is a complete list of artists in the The Dr. Laurence and Rita Sibrack Collection of Contemporary Glass and Ceramics: Dean Allison, Adrian Arleo, Michael Behrens, Susan Beiner, Alex Bernstein, Charles Birbaum, Christina Bothwell, Peter Bremers, Emily Brock, Lucio Bubacco, Jim Budde, Nancy Callan, Dale Chihuly, A-Mi Choi, Amber Cowan, Dan Dailey, Stefen Dam, Laura Donefer, Michael Glancy, Peter Hora, Agnes Husz, Jannet Iskander, Martin Janecky, Michael Janis, William Kidd, Sabrina Knowles, Velarde Kukuli, K. William LeQuier, Dianne Martin Lublinski, Emma Luna, Robert Mickelsen, Shelley Muzylowski Allen, Harumi Nakashima, Sybelle Peretti, Lindsay Pichaske, Jenny Pohlman, Clyfford Rainey, David Regan, Colin Reid, Ross Richmond, George Rodriquez, Davide Salvadore, Judith Schaechter, Livio Seguso, Preston Singletary, Carmen Spera, Kristen Stingle, April Surgent, Matthew Szösz, Etsuko Tashimu, Tim Tate, Tip Toland, Margit Tóth, Hidenori Tsumori, Sam Tuffnell, Janusz Walentynowicz, Patti Warashina, Ann Wolff, Loretta Yang and Mary Ann Zynsky.
Home to The Baker Museum and the Naples Philharmonic, Artis-Naples is unique among cultural institutions nationwide by its equal dedication to both the visual and performing arts. Both feature artists of global distinction.
Led by CEO and President Kathleen van Bergen and Artistic and Music Director Alexander Shelley, Artis-Naples offers more than 800 paid and free events annually across its 8.5-acre Kimberly K. Querrey and Louis A. Simpson Cultural Campus.
Artis-Naples welcomes hundreds of thousands of visitors each year for a broad array of artistic and educational opportunities perfect for audiences of all backgrounds and interests.
The cultural campus is home to five buildings, including two performance halls (Frances Pew Hayes Hall and Myra J. Daniels Pavilion), The Baker Museum, the Toni Stabile Education Building and the Kohan Administration Building.
The Naples Philharmonic has long been recognized as one of the cornerstones of Southwest Florida’s arts community. As part of Artis-Naples, the Naples Philharmonic performs more than 140 orchestral and chamber music concerts, as well as opera and ballet, education, community and special event concerts annually between September and June in the 1,477-seat Hayes Hall, the 283-seat Daniels Pavilion and around Southwest Florida.
The Naples Philharmonic has enjoyed a history of working with world-class music directors. Following a successful inaugural season in 2024-25, Alexander Shelley commences his second season in the role in 2025-26.
The Baker Museum is the foremost fine art museum in Southwest Florida, presenting an ambitious slate of exhibitions annually to complement installations of works from its permanent collection. Comprising more than 3,000 objects, the museum’s broad holdings of 20th- and 21st-century art reflect particular strengths in modern art of the United States and Mexico.
The Baker Museum’s collection demonstrates the generosity and commitment of area collectors, including significant gifts from the collection of the late Olga Hirshhorn.
In 2025, The Baker Museum was accredited by the American Alliance of Museums, the highest national recognition for museums in the United States, affirming the museum’s commitment to excellence, accountability and public service.
With more than two decades of collecting and exhibiting, the museum is committed to the stewardship and scholarship of its collections and to fostering inspiring and transformative experiences with the visual arts. At the same time, The Baker Museum partners with the world’s leading arts institutions to make extraordinary exhibitions accessible to the Southwest Florida community - including recently the National Portrait Gallery, London and the Helen Frankenthaler Foundation.
In 2020, Artis—Naples celebrated the renovation and expansion of The Baker Museum and adjoining Norris Garden, designed by Weiss/Manfredi Architecture/Landscape/Urbanism, which created new spaces for multidisciplinary exploration and social interaction.
In addition to creating and presenting visual and performing arts, Artis—Naples provides robust education and community activities for students of all ages in Collier and Lee counties. Each season, thousands of Collier County Public School students interact with Artis-Naples education programming, both on our cultural campus and in their classrooms.
Beyond a commitment to youth education, the Lifelong Learning program provides informative lectures and study opportunities for adults seeking to engage more deeply with the arts.
The Friends of Artis-Naples, comprised of more than 3,500 donor households, offers activities, travel experiences and events designed to foster a deeper relationship between patrons and the arts.
In 2017, Artis-Naples acquired the Naples International Film Festival, expanding its film offerings and providing a platform for the festival’s continued excellence and growth. In 2023, the festival’s 15th anniversary year, NIFF was named one of MovieMaker Magazine’s “20 Great Film Festivals in Vacation Destinations.”
Support for WGCU’s arts & culture reporting comes from the Estate of Myra Janco Daniels, the Charles M. and Joan R. Taylor Foundation, and Naomi Bloom in loving memory of her husband, Ron Wallace.