Art Center Shovels Through Renovation Process

In terms of preparing for real-world jobs, creative and artistic expression may be overshadowed by mathematical and scientific experiments in institutions across the nation, but not at the Palo Alto Art Center.

The art center, which has been closed since April 4 for a $7.9 million renovation, broke ground Saturday, indicating the start of a year-long construction project that will improve the center’s facilities for better public use.

During the 10 years of persistent, collaborative work that has led to this point in the overall renovation plan, the center’s transformation made significant progress.

“The foundation board has been working on this project for close to 10 years,” said Teri Vershel, co-founder of the Palo Alto Art Center Foundation. “In the last three to four years, we’ve spent most of our time working on fundraising for the campaign as well as working with Mark Cavagnero’s firm on the plan. It’s a huge accomplishment that we’ve made it this far, and we’re really thrilled to be here.”

The Palo Alto Art Center Foundation has planned to replace outdated features and refine the center’s resources to provide a comfortable learning environment for art enthusiasts.

“There’s no air conditioning in the facility, which is a real challenge for visitors and for the artwork,” said Karen Kienzle, director of the art center. “Our classrooms are crowded, we need updated mechanical and electrical utilities, we frequently blow fuses, we need standard office and computer equipment and we want to meet the demands for art education in our community by having more spaces.”

As a main facility for the arts in Palo Alto, the art center offers various displays and classes for community members to enjoy.

“The art center continues to serve about 70,000 people every year with quality arts programs,” Kienzle said. “We’re really unique in that we offer an exhibition program where people can come in to see our exhibitions free of charge and they can also make art. They can take a class, they can participate in a hands on art activity; we’ll continue to do that.”

Mark Cavagner Associates, the architectural company designing the art center renovations, has built several prominent buildings, including the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco and the Oakland Museum of California.

In developing the center’s design, Mark Cavagnero Associates foresaw possible extensions to the building and planned accordingly.

“We were considering what might be built in the future, so there’s the possibility that there could be a connection and an addition that goes through and links this building to the future library project,” said Beth Morris, who works for Mark Cavagnero Associates. “We designed everything now so that in future there could be another phase to make the connection all the way through.”

A distinct aspect of the center’s new parking lot, which will be located facing Newell Road, is the environmentally sound material used to create it.

“The parking lot will have some permeable paving, which means that it will absorb the rain water, and there’s not going to be more run-off that goes into the storm systems," said Morris. "That’s a sustainable feature that we’ll be putting on the site here.”

The project is a form of art, in which the concept of time is manifested by the artist, according to architect Mark Cavagnero.

“To me, architecture has always been very personal," said Cavagnero. "It kind of reminds me of art,  too, that art is somehow looking back and deciding what you want to leave behind and what you want to take with you."

The main priority for remodeling the art center is to enhance the individuals’ awareness of art, whether in classes or in tours of the exhibits.

“They’re making the gallery area better for viewing art and more interesting for the visitor,” art center volunteer Chelsea Chen said. “They’re making it so that the visitor’s experience is better.”

Similarly, the renovations will enable the art center to better serve its purpose of displaying art for the community while appealing to more individuals.

“The art center used to be the City Hall, but now it’ll be able to cater specifically to art," volunteer Ellen Song said. “It’ll definitely be more accessible to the community, and I think we’ll get more people to come in and see what’s going on.”

Councilwoman Gail Price, the liaison to the Palo Alto Art Center Foundation and executive director of the American Institute of Architects of Santa Clara Valley, said the center will be the base of art development in the community and will promote a variety of art styles.

“One thing we need to really look at, is these are the grounds and these are the buildings within which our community has an opportunity to express themselves through visual and performing arts," she said.

Although the art center will remain closed for the next year during the construction, art programs will continue through the center’s mobile undertaking of increasing art appreciation.

“Our hope is that during our closure when we go on the road with our programs, we’ll actually be able to increase our audiences," Kienzle said. "So when we reopen the facility, brand-new and updated, we’ll be able to serve even more people with quality arts programs."