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ENROLLED ORIGINAL
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A CEREMONIAL RESOLUTION
26-146
IN THE COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
March 31, 2026
To celebrate the 48th anniversary of Zenith Gallery and recognize it for its contributions to the
District of Columbia and the Greater Washington Metropolitan Area.
WHEREAS, Ward 4 resident Margery E. Goldberg, founder and director, opened Zenith
Gallery on Rhode Island Avenue NW, in March 1978 when she was 27 years old;
WHEREAS, since opening its doors, Zenith continues to represent artists from the
Washington Area, national, and international artists;
WHEREAS, for over 48 years, Ms. Goldberg has been curating public, private, corporate,
and institutional collections throughout the Washington D.C. metropolitan area and nationally;
WHEREAS, Zenith Gallery has grown to become one of Washington's foremost and
longest running galleries, recognized for its striking mix of high-quality contemporary
artworks in all media including paintings, indoor and outdoor sculpture, neon art, tapestries
and mixed media and collage art, and photography that stimulate and engage. The gallery
services have expanded to include high-quality acquisition, consulting, appraisal, and
commissioning services to residential, corporate, and institutional clients including many DC
Public Schools;
WHEREAS, Margery Goldberg received a BA in Fine Arts from George Washington
University and studied woodworking, sculpture and silversmithing at the Rochester Institute of
Technology where she was later a guest lecturer. Ms. Goldberg arrived in DC in 1968 from
Rochester, New York. After college, Ms. Goldberg opened a woodworking studio in
Georgetown, under the Whitehurst Freeway and produced sculptures, sculptural furniture,
and commissioned art;
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WHEREAS, Ms. Goldberg was one of the first women in America with her own
woodworking studio. After a fire left her Hayloft studio in ruins, she opened Zenith Gallery
in a complex at 15th and Rhode Island Avenue NW. The gallery opened in 1978. Soon after,
50 artists’ studios were added which served as an affordable haven for artists to work, live,
show their work and support each other. After the complex was closed in a zoning dispute,
the Zenith Gallery moved to 413 Seventh Street NW for 24 years and was actively involved
in the development and growth of the Penn Quarter downtown business community;
WHEREAS, In 2009, Zenith Gallery and The Zenith Community Arts Foundation
moved to Ms. Goldberg’s home in Ward 4, which includes a two-story Gallery Salon, a
regular gallery on the lower level, a sculpture garden in front and an inground sculpture
garden in her former swimming pool. Zenith continues to host art exhibitions with artists
talks for noted and emerging artists;
WHEREAS, as an accomplished artist, Goldberg has created more than 300 pieces of
sculpture, sculptured furniture, and neon, now in private and public collections throughout the U.S.,
Canada and Europe. In addition to showing her work in her own gallery, she has been featured in
ten one-women shows in the Mid-Atlantic region and more than 40 group shows in 13 U.S. cities;
WHEREAS, as a curator, Mrs. Goldberg has launched 450-plus shows for her own gallery
as well as traveling exhibitions, multiple Art League shows and more than 100 corporate
collections and projects, including major outdoor sculptures;
WHEREAS, Ms. Goldberg established The Zenith Community Arts Foundation– a
Washington DC, non-profit 501(c)(3) organization in 2000. The Foundation is dedicated to
promoting art and fostering alliances between artists, businesses, non-profits, and public sector
organizations, using the transformative power of art to benefit the community particularly through
public art and education;
WHEREAS, in 2020, the Foundation received a $150,000 grant from Events DC to
build the District’s first mobile woodshop as well as a stationary woodshop. The mobile
woodshop goes to two schools teaching carpentry skills, math, and employability skills at
Ballou Stay in Ward 8 and Luke C. Moore Stay program in Ward 5;
WHEREAS, in 2023, the Foundation received another grant from Events DC to create
a traveling exhibition about the trees of DC. Along with Casey trees this exhibition will be
traveling around DC for the next few years. This project has produced eight arboreal panels,
called “The Wonders of DC Trees.” These colorful displays dramatize the significance of the urban
canopy in the District of Columbia. They have already appeared at the Kennedy Center and have
been featured in selected DC public libraries; and
WHEREAS, the Zenith Gallery 48th Anniversary Exhibition will last through April 2026,
and will include exhibits from more than 40 artists, along with weekly artist talks and other
festivities promoting art collecting and appreciation.
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RESOLVED, BY THE COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, That this
resolution may be cited as the “Zenith Gallery 48th Anniversary Ceremonial Recognition
Resolution of 2026”.
Sec. 2. The Council of the District of Columbia recognizes and congratulates the Zenith
Gallery on its 48th anniversary and Zenith Community Arts Foundation on its 26 years, and
celebrates its success as a champion for the arts in the District.
Sec. 3. This resolution shall take effect immediately.