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Feature
November 2015 Casa Grande Art Museum |
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Tucked on a side street near the heart of the original Casa Grande is the Casa Grande Art Museum, in a house on the corner of Third and Maricopa, at 319 West Third Street.
The museum is open Wednesday through Saturday, 1 to 4 p.m., from the middle of October through May but only when there is an artist exhibit on display. The museum offers five single-artist shows a year. Shows are open to all artists in Arizona. Check the website, http://www.casagrandeartmuseum.org/, for details on the call to artists. Artists apply and are accepted into the shows by an anonymous jury. In addition, the museum has a small collection of art, including a signed Picasso. These pieces are displayed at various times in the museum’s four rooms and were mostly donated by local collectors and artists.
The museum is open Wednesday through Saturday, 1 to 4 p.m., from the middle of October through May but only when there is an artist exhibit on display. The museum offers five single-artist shows a year. Shows are open to all artists in Arizona. Check the website, http://www.casagrandeartmuseum.org/, for details on the call to artists. Artists apply and are accepted into the shows by an anonymous jury. In addition, the museum has a small collection of art, including a signed Picasso. These pieces are displayed at various times in the museum’s four rooms and were mostly donated by local collectors and artists.
Shows planned so far for the 2015-2016 season are:
• October 16 - November 7: Carl Clapp, a talented local artist who is widely known as Arizona’s agricultural artist. Many of his paintings show detailed renderings of the cotton plant and other agricultural related subjects;
• December 4 - December 19: A unique new offering featuring two artists working on the same piece over a three-week period, entitled Surrender;
• January 15, 2016 - February 5: Philip Bonds, a fantastic underwater photographer who has captured some incredible photos;
• February 19 - March 14: Mike Chiago, a gifted Native American painter.
• The final show of the year has yet to be determined.
• October 16 - November 7: Carl Clapp, a talented local artist who is widely known as Arizona’s agricultural artist. Many of his paintings show detailed renderings of the cotton plant and other agricultural related subjects;
• December 4 - December 19: A unique new offering featuring two artists working on the same piece over a three-week period, entitled Surrender;
• January 15, 2016 - February 5: Philip Bonds, a fantastic underwater photographer who has captured some incredible photos;
• February 19 - March 14: Mike Chiago, a gifted Native American painter.
• The final show of the year has yet to be determined.
Casa Grande Art Museum_interior 1
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Casa Grande Art Museum_interior 2
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Casa Grande Art Museum_interior 3
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The building, constructed in 1929 by baker Gus Kratzka, served originally as his home and bakery. On the National Registry of Historic Places, The house was purchased by the Friends of the Arts, Inc., in 1987 and opened as the Casa Grande Art Museum. The money to buy the house was raised in 1986, and an anonymous benefactor paid off the loan, about $25,000, in 1995. |
Casa Grande Art Museum Sculpture Garden 2
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Casa Grande Art Museum Sculpture Garden 2
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Casa Grande Art Museum_photos by Bob Spille
In its early years, the museum received funding from Local Transportation Assistance Funds through the City of Casa Grande for expenses and maintenance. For a while, the museum even had a paid curator. That funding has not been available for some time, and at one point the museum was dark for six to eight months. Then, two local artists approached the museum board and offered to donate time and maintenance of the grounds in exchange for studio space in order to keep the museum open.
The museum is now sustained only through donations and paid memberships. It is staffed by 15 to16 volunteers, many of whom are members of the Casa Grande Valley Fine Arts Association. The museum is committed to making a variety of art available to the community by artists throughout Arizona.
During the year 2014-2015 it received a grant from the State for a children’s program. This gave 25 children ranging in age from 8 to 16 the chance to try watercolor, ceramics and making and painting flowers out of metal.
If you’re passing through Casa Grande, be sure and take a look. Even if the museum is closed, you can still enjoy the sculptures found in the yard around it.
For more, check out the museum’s website at http://www.casagrandeartmuseum.org/
All photos by Bob Spille, who also kindly provided much of the information for the article.
The museum is now sustained only through donations and paid memberships. It is staffed by 15 to16 volunteers, many of whom are members of the Casa Grande Valley Fine Arts Association. The museum is committed to making a variety of art available to the community by artists throughout Arizona.
During the year 2014-2015 it received a grant from the State for a children’s program. This gave 25 children ranging in age from 8 to 16 the chance to try watercolor, ceramics and making and painting flowers out of metal.
If you’re passing through Casa Grande, be sure and take a look. Even if the museum is closed, you can still enjoy the sculptures found in the yard around it.
For more, check out the museum’s website at http://www.casagrandeartmuseum.org/
All photos by Bob Spille, who also kindly provided much of the information for the article.
