About the Park West Foundation

Albert Scaglione

Albert Scaglione is the founder and chief executive officer of Park West Gallery®, which sells works of fine art through galleries in Michigan and Florida, at art auction events across the country and on cruise ships internationally. Mr. Scagione went into the art auction business at the suggestion of a friend, who saw it as the future of collecting. As a teenager, Scaglione spent a summer working in a relative's gallery and loved everything about it, from the framing and crating of artwork to the sales. In the late 60's and early 70's, success came when he met Peter Max and became one of his most important art dealers. Shortly thereafter in the 70's in Paris, he met Yaacov Agam, considered to be the father of the kinetic art movement, and Victor Vasarely, one of the developers of Op art, and also became one of their most important art dealers.

His further successes in the 70's came when, by working directly with their prime dealers in Europe, he introduced the works of Maurits Escher, Marc Chagall, and Joan Miro to a much larger segment of the American Public. Since its establishment, Park West Gallery® has provided fine artwork of the highest quality to over 1 million clients around the world.

Albert Scaglione is deeply committed to serving his community, and he and Mitsie provide monetary gifts and art collections to a variety of charitable and non-profit organizations each year.

Mitsie Scaglione

As the executive director of the not-for-profit Park West Foundation, Mitsie Scaglione has created a dynamic organization that touches the lives of underprivileged young women in the Detroit area. At the helm of the organizations’ varied activities, Mitsie Scaglione is the guiding force for overall operations that includes new directions for youth. Designed to ease the difficult transition from foster care to a fulfilling life as young adults, this program offers help for those about to “age-out” of the state-sponsored foster care system.

Working with foster children is something dear to Mitsie’s heart, though it wasn’t a cause she and her husband Albert were looking for. Four years ago, the Scagliones sponsored a benefit for the Lutheran Child and Family Service of Michigan at their Park West Gallery. They were touched when one of the girls they aided drew a picture in thanks, and decided to look deeper into the situation.

Mitsie takes a very hands-on approach to help these young women find their way. Under her direction, the organization gives back to the community in terms of providing funds and guidance, from something as simple as obtaining a birth certificate to more complex issues such as how to locate other organizations who can offer help with housing and medical care.

In addition to helping in practical ways, Mistie is in direct personal contact with the children who refer to her as “Grandma” and to Albert as “Grandpa.” Creating a sense of family is a way of humanizing the lives of these children who often have forgotten what it means to be part of a family.