By Dana Amireh
Adam Mena, a Fresno State alumnus with a master’s degree in sculpture, is hosting a free, all-age event this Thursday called Skateboard Art Show for ArtHop. The event will feature music, a skate demo, food and plenty of art.
The skateboard-themed art show will be at the Fresno Arthouse, located in the cultural art district of downtown Fresno. Mena and three other artists, Chreighton Geigle, Chris Geigle and Erik Beltran, put their money together for their own personal studio.
Originally, their plan was to solely open up a gallery to show their artwork but over time thought it would be a good idea to open it up to any up-and-coming or established artists.
Artists who would like to have their art shown at the Arthouse, can pay a $30 flat rate for wall space and $15 for a pedestal.
“There is no commission charge for anything artists sell, so they’ll earn 100 percent of the profit,” Mena said.
In the past, Arthouse has had CArtHop, a gathering of local food trucks, come in as well as food trucks Dusty Buns and Weenies on Wheels.
Mena hopes that by giving artists a space to showcase their work at shows like the Skateboard Art Show, other galleries will see their work and use them in their galleries, too.
“We’re trying to expand ArtHop and just inspire other artists to go out and start their own stuff, you know, get their work out there,” Mena said.
Some of the art visitors can expect to see will incorporate skateboard history with tons of photos from the 1970s. Merchandise is sold at the show as well as different pieces and prints from local artists.
Mena has been curating, planning and contacting many people in preparation for the event.
“This is one of our biggest shows, and we’ve been preparing for it for a while,” Mena said.
Local artists will soon be able to start subleasing month-to-month. The owners will give them a key to the gallery where they can work 24 hours a day.
“Certain places close early, so if you’re trying to work super late, you’re able to work with other creative artists and gain inspiration,” Mena said. “You can inspire each other and collaborate.”
Mena explained how difficult and intimidating it is for new artists to get their art showcased. Arthouse is open to any type of art and welcomes all artists to start there.
“We want to showcase up-and-coming artists because we know how intimidating it is to approach galleries and ask about showing their artwork there,” Mena said. “As an artist, it’s hard to get shows, so we want to be the foundation. We do have well-established artists. However, it’s satisfying to see the new ones grow as well as having the older generation really respect what we’re doing.”
Bryan Ocegueda, a senior at Fresno State majoring in art and printmaking, said the art scene downtown has definitely evolved over the past few years, especially for college students.
“Since the H Street Arthouse opened up their space to a younger crowd of artists who necessarily didn’t have an in with the older studios, it brought in a younger crowd, mostly college students seeing that Adam Mena was a Fresno State student,” Ocegueda said. “With the big shows like the skate show coming up this week, they are able to bring in a group of people who may not attend ArtHop regularly.”
Mena said Arthouse also caters to local bands. The four bands that are playing this Thursday night are: It’ll Grow Back, Basura, Wallflower and Hell08s.
As opposed to other Fresno art studios and galleries, Mena said Arthouse stays open the latest. The Skateboard Art Show starts at 5 p.m. and ends at 10 p.m. Thursday. Arthouse is located at 1612 H St.
“After all the galleries shut down, it’s like a party here. That’s the cool thing about our space. We want to give people something fun and free to do, like the Skateboard Art Show, “ Mena said.
For more information about Arthouse’s available showcase space and events, visit www.FresnoArthouse.com.