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The Boston Visual Artists Union was founded in 1970 to foster a community of visual artists working in various media, provide support to artists through exhibitions and varied services, and facilitate interactions with the public and access to opportunities.
The Boston Visual Artists Union evolved during the winter of 1970-1971 from an informal meeting of artists dissatisfied with the lack of opportunities available to them in Boston. The first exhibition of the Union was held in November, 1971, at Boston City Hall and the organization was incorporated in October 1972. In January 1974 the Union moved to 3 Center Plaza and opened a gallery. By 1975 it had a peak membership of 1,000 and was the largest organization of individual artists in the United States. The Union relocated again in 1978 to 77 North Washington Street, Boston.
In addition to exhibitions and other art programs the Boston Visual Artists Union published a newsletter, assisted artists with housing and studio space, operated a job bank, a slide registry, and a federal credit union, and hosted the second American Artists Congress in November 1975 where the primary issue was "survival of the visual artist in the 70's."
