BOSTON -- WCVB-TV is the proud sponsor of the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum's Centennial Celebration, which celebrates 100 years of artistic innovations and inspiration.

The celebration kicks off on Jan. 24 and runs for 18 months.

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One hundred years ago, Isabella Stewart Gardner created a new context for art in America by creating a museum -- the first of its kind -- where visitors could experience visual arts, music and horticulture within a highly personal setting.

"The Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum has been something special from the start," said Anne Hawley, Norma Jean Calderwood Director. "In a world where encounters with such beauty and cultural richness are increasingly rare, its mission -- to fire the imagination of all who visit -- is particularly relevant, as we celebrate and honor Isabella Stewart Gardner's vision and legacy 100 years ago."

The museum will present an array of new exhibitions and programs throughout the Centennial -- focusing on intermingling of the arts.

"One of the most compelling aspects of the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum is its juxtaposition of contemporary and historical art," said Hawley. "It is particularly suitable to launch our Centennial celebration with an exhibition of installations by Joseph Kosuth, a pioneer in conceptual art. The Centennial will celebrate Isabella Stewart Gardner's legacy of patronage to the artists of the day by inspiring contemporary thinking and showcasing new works to a welcoming public and the international arts community."

Throughout the Centennial, the Museum will also present new works and programs in new spaces. A large-scale textual installation in neon by Kosuth will adorn the Museum's exterior wall, visible to passersby, and smaller textual works will be interspersed in the galleries.

Two new Centennial concert series will present musical performances in new areas of the Museum, classical music in the central courtyard and jazz and Brazilian music in the Rose Gardens.

In April, The Making of a Museum: Isabella Stewart Gardner as Collector, Architect and Designer will take an unprecedented look at the Museum's founder and creation and showcase never-before-released archival material among the permanent collection and galleries.