Hermitage Artist Retreat Receives Major Gift; Doubling Capacity

The Hermitage Artist Retreat announced that the organization has received an unprecedented gift of land and property from the Morrison and Steans family. Located less than half a mile from the Hermitage’s existing home on Manasota Key, this property will more than double the Hermitage’s capacity for its celebrated artist residency program. The total appraised value of the gift is approximately $12,000,000, making this one of the largest land gifts of its kind to a nonprofit arts organization.

The Gulf-to-Bay property spans 6.5 acres of land and is comprised of five main structures. These buildings will provide additional accommodations for the nonprofit’s renowned artist-in-residence program. Generative artists, writers, and performers are invited by nomination to enjoy multi-week residencies on Manasota Key, where they receive the gift of time and space in an inspirational setting to develop new works of theater, music, visual art, literature, dance, and more.

The Morrison and Steans families – comprised of seven siblings and cousins – made this gift to the Hermitage in honor of their parents: Harrison I. Steans, Lois M. Steans, Harold M. Morrison, and Adeline S. Morrison. “Our parents believed in the mission and values of the Hermitage, and they understood first-hand the inspiration and importance of its Manasota Key home,” said the families in a joint statement. “We donate this property to the Hermitage Artist Retreat filled with hope that it will always remain a place of kindness and tolerance, where invited artists feel welcome; a place for fostering community, collaboration, connectivity, and conversations; a place of inspiration and creation; and a place that stewards the rich ecology and diversity of nature.” Adeline Morrison remains an engaged and enthusiastic supporter of the Hermitage, along with her four daughters, three nieces, and their respective families.

“Our family has a longstanding commitment to the Manasota Key community and its environmental preservation, and we share a collective belief in the power of nature and art to enrich lives,” added the Morrisons and Steans. “Under Andy’s leadership, the Hermitage has demonstrated that its mission and values enhance and enrich the community of the Key immeasurably, while also adding immeasurable value to the global artistic landscape. We have been impressed with Andy’s ambitious vision for the organization, and we are grateful for the beautiful gift that the Hermitage is to Manasota Key, seamlessly integrating its exceptional artists-in-residence program with this beachfront oasis.”  

“This transformative gift from the Morrison and Steans family is a game-changer for the future of the Hermitage,” said Artistic Director and CEO Andy Sandberg. “The family’s belief in the mission and values of the organization is deeply moving, and we do not take for granted what an unbelievable gift this is. This property will allow the Hermitage to not only serve individual artists, but also to uplift and support more collaborative ventures and project residencies – developing works that will be seen across the globe in major presenting halls, Broadway stages, concert venues, leading museums and galleries, bookstores, and cinemas.”

The properties were originally built by the prominent Vanderbilt family, who settled on Manasota Key in the early 1950s. The Steans and Morrisons ultimately acquired the properties from Samuel and Lydia Auchincloss in 1987. For the past four decades, the Steans and Morrisons have used these homes as a retreat for their seven daughters and their respective families and guests.

The properties were officially transferred to the Hermitage in 2025 in pursuit of the organization’s mission: to foster and inspire the most influential and culturally consequential art and artists of our time. This is the largest single gift the Hermitage has ever received in its twenty-three-year history, and one of the largest land gifts of its kind to a nonprofit arts organization.

As the Hermitage has grown, physical capacity has sometimes presented a challenge for the aspirational goals of the organization. In recent years, the Morrison and Steans family invited the nonprofit to host artists-in-residence as their guests when the Hermitage needed overflow accommodations. Since the fall of 2024, following the impact of Hurricanes Helene and Milton on the Hermitage’s historic buildings, the Morrison and Steans families generously invited the Hermitage to expand its use of their properties. Unlike the historic Hermitage property up the road, the newly donated properties suffered minimal damage from the storms. 

“This extraordinary family’s demonstration of their belief in the mission and values of the Hermitage is the truest form of philanthropy,” added Sandberg. “This unparalleled gift gives new life to the future of the organization as we plan for the lasting legacy of the Hermitage, deepening our roots on Manasota Key as we continue to broaden the Hermitage’s reach and impact both nationally and internationally.”

This newly gifted property is also the Hermitage Artist Retreat’s first ownership of land, as the nonprofit organization has been a longstanding tenant of Sarasota County in its properties adjacent to Blind Pass Beach. Nevertheless, the nonprofit organization has no intention of abandoning its original Manasota Key home, where the Hermitage has a lease with Sarasota County that currently allows for extensions up through 2055. 

“This new property is intended as an expansion, not a replacement,” added Sandberg. “To have a property of our own where we can host additional artists in residence is deeply meaningful. This will allow us to broaden the reach and impact of our Hermitage programming, and to dream even bigger about the possibilities for project residencies, artistic collaborations, and more.”

The 850 artists the Hermitage has served includes 18 Pulitzer Prize winners, Poets Laureate, Guggenheim and MacArthur Fellows, and multiple Tony, Emmy, Grammy, Oscar winners and nominees. 

“The Hermitage is an organization that is deeply committed to celebrating the freedom of artistic expression, offering necessary space and time for artists to ruminate, conjure, and create,” said two-time Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Lynn Nottage. “I had the opportunity to visit the Hermitage as a Fellow, and I have more recently held the honor of serving on the Curatorial Council. This extraordinary gift of expansion to the Hermitage will provide wonderful new possibilities for collaboration and invention.”

 “This is one of the most heavenly and inspiring places on earth, and the interdisciplinary nature of the Hermitage’s programming is deeply connected to its roots on Manasota Key,” added internationally renowned flutist Claire Chase. “It is thrilling to imagine how this gift will allow the Hermitage to expand its already visionary possibilities.”

“I have developed my plays Liberation and Camp Siegfried at the Hermitage, among other new projects, and I cannot express to you how vital this magical place is to the cultural fabric of our society,” said Tony Award-nominated playwright Bess Wohl, whose hit Broadway play Liberation shared some of its earliest excerpts on the Hermitage Beach. “I recently had the opportunity to stay at this new property as a guest of the Morrison and Steans family, and to know that this land has now been entrusted to Hermitage for its mission gives me so much joy and hope for the future of all the incredible work that will be made there for generations to come.”

“The Hermitage is one of those rare places where there’s no limit on what you can explore,” said acclaimed choreographer Lorenzo ‘Rennie’ Harris. “My dancers and I were among the first to experience the generosity of this new gift, and hearing that this inspiring property will be in the hands of the Hermitage forever gives me so much hope for the future. Anything and everything are possible at the Hermitage, and I am so grateful to know there are kind and generous people who believe so passionately in the mission of this remarkable place.” 

“This is a monumental accomplishment for the Hermitage and a triumph for the countless artists and audiences who will benefit from this profoundly generous donation,” added Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award-winning Hermitage alumnus and trustee Doug Wright. “The Hermitage is championing artists at the most critical stage of their process, and the inspiration behind so many of the works created at the Hermitage has been deeply influenced by the magic of Manasota Key. This expansion is a thrilling gift to our cultural society. Now, what dreams may come!” 

“Seeing this gift come to fruition is nothing short of a dream come true,” added Sandberg. “It has also been a great pleasure getting to know the extended Morrison and Steans families,” added Sandberg.  “I had the privilege of meeting Addie Morrison when I first joined the Hermitage six years ago. Since then, I have enjoyed getting to know the family as neighbors, friends, and supporters. Sitting down with the seven cousins to discuss our shared goals has been inspiring and invigorating. Collectively and individually, the Steans and Morrisons are good-hearted, passionate, and thoughtfully intelligent people. We are honored that they have entrusted us with their family’s legacy on Manasota Key.”

In addition to its commitment as an arts incubator, the Hermitage takes pride in its commitment to ecological preservation. The organization has invested significantly over the years in planting native flora and removing invasive species from its Manasota Key home. “The Hermitage is deeply committed to caring for this land and these unique coastal properties,” said Emeritus Trustee and longtime Manasota Key resident Larry Bold. “As we have demonstrated with the commitment, care, and resources we have put into the properties down the road, the Hermitage Board and team take our role as stewards of the land very seriously, and we know the Morrison and Steans families have put great trust in the Hermitage for the future of this land. We do not take the responsibility lightly, and as we have always done, the Hermitage intends to be both attentive caretakers and thoughtful neighbors.”

The Hermitage Board of Trustees recognizes this new ownership of property will mean an increase to the annual operating budget, and they are eager to embrace this next chapter. “This has been an incredible period of growth for our organization,” noted Board President Carole Crosby. “The organization is ripe for continued expansion, and we are hopeful that this extremely generous gift from the Morrison and Steans families will inspire others to recognize the value of supporting this vital arts organization.”

“We are excited about what this will mean for the future of the organization,” added Andy Sandberg. “This milestone gift is setting the Hermitage on a thrilling trajectory, with new opportunities and possibilities on the horizon.” 

Since assuming his role as Artistic Director and CEO of the Hermitage in January of 2020, Sandberg has guided the organization through a period of significant growth and expansion. Despite the challenges of the pandemic and three of the region’s most devastating hurricanes, Sandberg and the Hermitage team have dramatically expanded the organization’s live programming; introduced dozens of new regional, national, and international collaborations; grown the organization’s annual revenue by nearly 5X; and overseen two of the largest nonprofit theater-commissioning initiatives in America. The Hermitage is now recognized as one of the preeminent new works incubators in the United States, celebrating and elevating the voices of diverse and accomplished artists spanning theater, music, visual art, dance, film, literature, and more. Beyond his role at the Hermitage, Sandberg is a director, writer, and Tony Award-winning producer whose theatrical work has been represented in New York, London, and throughout the U.S.

 A leading national arts incubator, the Hermitage is the only major arts organization in Florida exclusively committed to supporting the development and creation of new work across all artistic disciplines. The Hermitage hosts artists on its Gulf Coast Manasota Key campus for multi-week residencies, where diverse and accomplished artists from around the world and across multiple disciplines create and develop new works of theater, music, visual art, literature, dance, film, and more. As part of their residencies, Hermitage Fellows participate in free year-round community programs, offering audiences in the region a unique opportunity to engage with some of the world’s leading artists and to get an authentic “sneak peek” into extraordinary projects and artistic minds before their works go on to major galleries, concert halls, theaters, and museums around the world. These free and innovative programs include performances, conversations, readings, music concerts, interactive experiences, open studios, school programs, teacher workshops, and more, serving thousands in our regional community each year.