I have a love for Downtown Fresno. The buildings have meaning and are so beautiful. They are a reminder of the history of Fresno. The T.W. Patterson Building is one of those buildings. Since it’s origination in the 1920’s, the T.W. Patterson Building has been an iconic piece of downtown Fresno. It’s in the heart of downtown Fresno, and in the day to day operations, it holds office space for attorneys, service professionals, artists, and restaurants. It has undergone a variety of renovations, and looks absolutely beautiful.
As a supporter of downtown’s revitalization, something new has happened in the T.W. Patterson Building. Just recently, the mezzanine (4,300+ square feet) has been donated to Marc Blake and the Central California Conservatory of Visual & Performing Arts. Marc Blake is a local photographer and gallery curator. Marc’s goal is to use the space for art-related functions and to turn the building’s mezzanine into a destination for creativity and the arts. In fact, the mezzanine is being transformed into an art gallery, which is perfect timing for the upcoming ArtHop event!
As many of you know, ArtHop happens on the first Thursday of every month. Local areas open up their businesses, homes, churches, buildings, space to feature local art and artists. This Thursday, the T.W. Patterson building will be participating in ArtHop with an event titled, “Today’s Lesson: Our World of Education.” Each place that participates in ArtHop has a different theme, or type of art featured. The reason why the T.W. Patterson building has decided to go with education is partly because of Marcos Dorado. Marcos is an artist who has a series called “31 Teachers.” Each day of July, he produced a portrait of a different local teacher. This sparked the idea for an education-related event. The other artists (Chris Connor, Marc Blake, and Rick Horowitz) invited to join the exhibit were asked to provide works which represented education in some way. From there they decided to involve various schools and organizations to help develop the theme.
Students who will have their art on display come from various areas around town, such as, Valley Arts & Science Academy, Social Vocational Services, UCP of Central California, and the Clovis Regional Library. The students from the Clovis Library got involved because the Friends of the Clovis Library asked Marc Blake to teach a 3 week workshop to students. The students learned a lot about angles, lighting, spaces, shadows, colors, and how to really see more than just what’s in front of them. The students are very proud of their work. I have a soft spot in my heart for the library and for education, so I’m excited about this partnership, and I can’t wait to see the students’ art work on display!
The owner of the T.W. Patterson Building, Rick Roush, says it best…“Events like this which bring together art, education, and community, are truly what our downtown needs to become the vibrant, enticing destination we know it can be.”
Yes!!
So, if you’ll be ArtHopping this Thursday night, make the T.W. Patterson Building one of your stops. Hope to see you there!!!
ArtHop
Thursday, October 1st, from 5 PM to 8 PM.
There will be free valet parking, wine, hors d’oeuvres, and live music at the exhibit.
T.W. Patterson Building
2014 Tulare St.
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What a lovely coverage Tiffiny. Learn more about my projects at http://cccvpa.com (Marc Blake)