March 6th Featured Venues

Please join us Friday, March 6th for the kick-off of 2015 First Friday Downtown Visalia programming!

First Friday First Stop: Visalia Fox Theatre (300 W Main)

“In Celebration” exhibition in the Fox Den, featuring work by nine artists on the theme of Downtown Visalia and its iconic landmark, the Visalia Fox Theatre, which celebrates its

“Fox Tower” by Sleekmaus

85th anniversary this year. Live painting demonstration by featured artist Josh Wittman. Behind-the-scenes rehearsal experience with the Tulare County Symphony.

Art Stop #2: Brandon-Mitchell Gallery at the Spiritual Awareness Center (117 S. Locust)

P. Kay woods has traveled the world from Nepal to England, Mexico and India. Her beautifully textured photographs in the exhibition titled “Edge” explore facets of the human experience.

Art Stop #3: Arts Visalia (214 E Oak)

Featuring works from the upcoming South Valley Artists Studio Tour, organized by the Arts Consortium, this exhibit of over 30 pieces in a variety of mediums represents talent found all over Tulare County. SVAST tickets for the weekend of Mar. 20 – 22 will be available for purchase.

“Lake Success with Mustard in Bloom” by Joy Collier

Art Stop #4: Old Lumberyard (NE corner of Oak & Garden)

The Urbanists are back with their Lumberyard Sessions!  Enjoy music and work by

“JG3” by Mychal Alva

artists all over Tulare County and beyond, with special guest artist Mychal Alva – a mixed media collage artist that creates vivid images from the everyday.

Art Stop #5: Jon Ginsburg Gallery at the Creative Center (410 E Race)

Artists from all over flocked to the Jon Ginsburg Gallery for the “Going to the Birds” exhibition.  25% of all sales benefit the Creative Center, a non-profit community arts center for adults with developmental disabilities.

Art Stop #6: 210

A collection of landscape and portrait photography by a variety of local artists.  Also enjoy refreshments, baked goods, and mingling with members of the Visalia Chamber of Commerce.

Art Stop #7: Country Roads Studio (213 N West)

“Untitled” by Joanie Gray Constable

Photographers are encouraged to bring their cameras (or smart phones!) for interactive demos and live action.  This multi-functional space will also host the sewing guild – not to be missed by passionate crafters!

 

 

 

 

Check out our map of the docent-guided Towne Trolley route, FREE to First Friday Downtown Visalia participants!

March 6th: Kick your First Friday off at the Visalia Fox Theatre!

We are so thrilled to announce that our March 6th First Friday headquarters will be at the Visalia Fox Theatre!

Kick off your evening by celebrating 85 years since this historic landmark first opened its doors.  Take a docent-led tour of the beautifully restored building; pop into the auditorium for a behind-the-scenes experience as the Tulare County Symphony rehearses for their next performance; enjoy a live-demonstration by our featured artist Josh Wittman, and visit the exhibition in the Fox Den to see many more works by local artists and enjoy free beverages and hors d’oeuvres.

From the Fox, hop on the free Towne Trolley for easy access to other featured exhibition openings downtown, including those at Arts Visalia and The Jon Ginsburg Gallery at the Creative Center.

More details will be coming soon.  See you there!

George Gonzalez: Artist

Written and Photographed by Ted Andrade

George Gonzalez has a way of playing with distance. Though likely unintentional, the phenomena is often attached to his work. Whether it’s in the ethereal and confrontational qualities of a painting, the variance in ideologies that inspired such, or simply his passion for biking, the man doesn’t seem content with being stationary.

                Likewise, Gonzalez’s work has developed quite a lot since his start as a teen. Having early roots in graffiti and DIY poster work, his current output consists somewhat exclusively of large paintings subsumed in near monolithic importance. A firm believer in understanding a process completely in order to derail it, his art has encompassed the influence of styles ranging from Baroque, to Pop Art, to comic and illustration techniques.  Fittingly, the artist considers much of his initial efforts to be practice in graphic design. Though never formally trained or schooled, he has remained a student of design since his mid -teens, allowing his field of research to double as a lucrative and diverse pallet. Whether creating gig posters, church flyers, or personal insignias, the focus has always been improvement, not only in detail but in the resultant effect of the finished product.

These works, simultaneously stark, inviting, and elusive, exist in their own individual yet cohesive spaces. Each appears to be an event occurring both within a few feet from the viewer, & worlds away. Equally contrasting is Gonzalez’s ability to weave abstract and surreal elements into a painting without letting either aspect overwhelm the overall image. Many pieces instead trade the most common roles for these components in for a decidedly nostalgic, hazy quality which, elusive to description, is possibly one of the most notable attributes of his recent work.

Adamant about mixing disciplined technique with emotion driven design, Gonzalez has created a body of work which interpolates lifelike detail with expressive brush strokes and chance-operation methods. Having put in more than enough time and work to have mastered realistic painting method, Gonzalez also includes aspects of procedures he’s learned as a part of the artwork rather than as just a means to create it. This means multiple sources such as parts of books, magazines, and other collected artifacts (George is an avid collector and has amassed a good deal of these) may be culled from or studied as a jumping point, that colors and arrangements will be layered or changed, and squeegees will be dragged across canvas (He’s also a print enthusiast) before calling it a day. And a day is often all it takes for him to complete a painting.

George Gonzalez is currently creating a new tentative series that, at the moment, is intended to explore the grainy, warped appearance of old VHS tapes using canvas, and will possibly be themed. Georges work and blurbs can be found at http://milkhoneyinc.tumblr.com, and can be seen in person at First Capitol Group, Inc. at our upcoming First Friday on December 6^th.”