& programs
PROJECTS
Downtown Public art tours
Saturday - April 6
Saturday - May 4
Saturday - June 1
Saturday - July 6
Saturday - Aug 3
Saturday - Sept 7
Saturday - Oct 5
Upcoming 2024 Season
The Downtown Chico Art Tours are held on the first Saturday of the month, from spring to fall, open to the public, and free of charge. Participants meet at the “Our Hands” sculpture located next to City Hall, 411 Main Street at 10 a.m.
The Art Tours are led by Chico Arts and Culture Foundation volunteers and take about an hour and under a mile of flat terrain. The variety of sculptures, murals, tile work, fountains, and street furniture are discussed with an emphasis on behind-the-scenes anecdotes about the artists and the making of the art works. This is an enjoyable and low-key way to learn about a small selection of the huge variety of art and artists in Chico. Ideally it will inspire further exploration and investigation of the wealth of arts and culture in the region.
Art MINI GRANTS
This year we launched a program to offer five Mini Grants of $100 each to selected youth in our community to support their creative pursuits. We held the 10-day application process in April in which applicants included a 100-300 word essay describing themselves and how they would use the grant award. The board reviewed applicants at the end of April and awarded the winners and honorable mentions in early May. We are thrilled to support the creative visions of our grant winners:
Congratulations to Our Grant Winners:
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Emma Kathleen Garrahy
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Brett McGuire
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Megan Moural
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Calvin Thao
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John Rollo
We would also like to recognize our Honorable Mentions:
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Gracie Gomes
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Preston Breeze
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Kathleen Breeze
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Rokee Ajaw Pedro-Meza
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Silas Steele DeGeorge
Thank you to our community for getting the word out and to all our applicants for their wonderful creative projects!
Art mentor Program
Through a regional grant we developed a successful program pairing at-risk area youth with local artists in various disciplines including drum making, animation, and multi-media visual art.
The 2022 program titled Emerging Artists paired 8 mentors with youth from the Chico Boys and Girls Club focusing on music, dance, improvisation games, macrame, photography, mosaic, paper crafting, clay etc. Culminating projects will be displayed at an art reception at the Boys and Girls Club and Emerging Artists will have the opportunity to participate in the National Fine Art Exhibit through the National Boys and Girls Club.
In 2023 we are continuing this outstanding program with new mentors and projects!
CHAMPIONS OF THE ARTS
"Champions of the Arts" is an annual Chico Arts and Culture Foundation event honoring local heroes whose achievements as artists, patrons, organizations, and businesses is cause for celebration and accolades. This event expands on the Arts Commission’s longstanding tradition of recognizing those in the community who go above and beyond in producing or supporting the arts.
All of the Champions of the Arts acknowledge that awareness, education, and maintenance of public art is good for our city and the people in our community.
Past Champions include:
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Amber Palmer, MA, MFT, Fine Art Consultant & Artist
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Cameron Kelly, Gallery Director, Chico Art Center
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Christine Mac Shane, Artist and Owner, The Studio 561
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Jessie Mercer, Artist, Key Project Tribute, Butte County Art on Wheels
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Marc Edson, Executive Director, Chico Theater Company
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Rebecca McIntyre Senoglu, Coordinator, Enloe Regional Cancer Center, Healing Art Gallery
Jenise Coon Memorial Sculpture Project
Due to the pandemic, the Champions of the Arts event was on hold but we hope to bring back this event in 2023-2024 paired with the Jenise Coon memorial sculpture project fundraiser in honor of an artist, teacher, and performer whose impact on the community shall be celebrated in a lasting way.