Janet Langsam set to step down as longtime CEO of ArtsWestchester

WHITE PLAINS, N.Y. — She has been a force for the arts in Westchester County for more than 30 years.

Now, Janet Langsam is preparing to take a bow and step down as CEO of ArtsWestchester.

From the streets of White Plains to the waterfront in Yonkers, and even the walkway on the Gov. Mario Cuomo Bridge, Langsam changed the landscape for the arts in Westchester County.

“Massive explosion of the arts on a lot of different levels,” Langsam said.

ArtsWestchester programs events and funds local arts providers. Langsam became CEO in 1991, after serving in New York City government under mayors Lindsay and Koch.

State Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins said Langsam’s impact has been profound.

“What has made her so successful is her entire, pure conviction about the importance of art in our lives,” Stewart-Cousins said.

“When I came here, we were funding 12 organizations,” Langsam said.

Today, more than 200 receive funding through ArtsWestchester.

Langsam led the effort to purchase an old bank building in the heart of White Plains, creating gallery and performance space, and studios to help artistic creativity flow.

“I think the arts needs to be central and accessible to people and I think that’s what this was about,” Langsam said.

Her philosophy is people shouldn’t have to buy a ticket or go to a museum to experience the arts.

“I think everybody deserves to have the arts in their lives,” Langsam said.

Langsam is retiring as CEO knowing the arts are impacting Westchester’s economy and quality of life.

“And that’s a good thing,” she said.

She has spent her career bringing people to the arts, and arts to the people.