Gallery hopes to beautify city

Clearlake >> Stephanie Figueroa is on a mission. A beautification mission.

As owner of the Art House Gallery in Clearlake, she’s in the perfect position to assist with revamping the city’s image. And that’s just what she’s doing. The art gallery and the Children’s Museum of Art and Science (CMAS) have teamed up for the Wildlife of Clearlake Youth Public Art Project, a city-wide endeavor that aims to improve the vibe of Clearlake.

The project brings together local students and businesses. In recent weeks Figueroa has been collecting art from all 6th-12th grade students in Clearlake, Lower Lake, Clearlake Oaks and Spring Valley. Come Saturday, the students’ work will be on display at the Art House Gallery. Businesses are invited to attend the student art show, view the art, and choose a student they wish to sponsor.

For those students interested in being part of the project, but who either don’t want to be included in the reception or don’t have the time to create a piece of work before this Saturday, they can still turn in art to the Art House Gallery. Figueroa will post all the artwork on a Facebook page — Wildlife of Clearlake Youth Public Art Project — where businesses can further view the art and select students to sponsor. This will continue until June third.

This summer, those kids who receive a sponsor will go into free workshop classes at Woodland Community College in Clearlake. There, they will receive instruction on recreating their original artwork on four by four boards. Once those are done, plaques with the artist’s name will be attached, and the boards will go up around town, both inside buildings and out. A few businesses have already shown interest in sponsoring students, including Clearlake City Hall, the visitor center and the library.

When Figueroa and Carolynn Jarrett of CMAS presented the idea to the City of Clearlake, they were met with overwhelming support. “They told us, ‘You two ladies are going to make an impact on our community and we welcome your project,’” Figueroa recalled.

The Wildlife of Clearlake Public Youth Art Project will not only benefit the city aesthetically, it will give students a confidence boost as they see their work adorning building around town. In a city like Clearlake, where children may not have as much access to the arts, it’s important to present these types of opportunities — if a business chooses to sponsor a student, the summer workshop at Woodland Community College will be free of charge, so that any child can take part, regardless of finances.

“Our community is low income. We need to make these avenues for children to have fun and have an enjoyable, educational art experience,” said Figueroa.

Students aren’t the only ones who suffer the consequences of a poor economy. Some organizations may be interested in displaying an art board, but cannot afford to sponsor a child. So the Art House Gallery and CMAS are also looking for funding from entities like the Chamber of Commerce and Rotary, to cover the cost of a board for anyone who would like one.

With a number of disasters befalling the county in just a couple short years — two destructive fires and serious flooding — Clearlake is about ready for some positivity. It’s time to focus on rebuilding the community, Figueroa said, adding, “Why not rebuild it with a little bit of art?”

Many focus on the negative aspects of the city, such as drug use and poverty, but there’s plenty of good, too. Just look at the thriving wildlife living in and around the lake. That’s the reason behind the project’s title — Wildlife of Clearlake. Kids are invited to create renderings of the fish, birds and other creatures inhabiting the city.

“We really have a beautiful community here and people are not really aware of what we have around us,” said Figueroa. “I figure if I do wildlife it will bring attention to everything we do have here, the positive side versus the negative side.”

A public art project will also hopefully battle the vandalism and graffiti marring the city, bring in more tourism, promote local business and help to create a flourishing community.

The student art show for the Wildlife of Clearlake Public Youth Art Project takes place this Saturday from 2-5 p.m. at the Art House Gallery in Clearlake. Culinary Students from Woodland Community College will be providing appetizers.

For more information or to submit a student’s artwork, email clearlakearthousegallery@gmail.com or call Figueroa at 295-1030. The Art House Gallery is located at 15210 Lakeshore Dr.

Jennifer Gruenke can be reached at 900-2019.

https://www.record-bee.com/2017/05/18/gallery-hopes-to-beautify-city/