04/28/2022
📅 SAVE THE DATE ✨
Saturday, May 28th, 2022
Artist In Residence workshop with Ana Pocalypse. Sponsored by Arts Connection, The Arts Council of San Bernardino County. More info coming soon.
The Garcia Center for the Arts
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The Garcia Center for the Arts: to sponsor, promote and sustain the arts in the San Bernardino community
The San Bernardino Valley Concert Association or SBVCA,
was established in the year 1932. The purpose and mission of the association when it was first founded was to contract with touring music and dance groups to perform for their audiences. The association would pay all major cost for groups performing at the Sturges Center for the Fine Arts. The groups performing would then take all proceeds fr
om ticket sales to sustain their program. By the turn of the Century the Valley Concert Association was not able to continue their philanthropy because of a lack of funding. In 2008 a generous donation from the estate of Frank Plash gave the needed funds to revive the Concert Association. The board adopted a simpler Mission “To Sponsor, Promote and Sustain the Arts.”
Sponsoring concerts, music programs, and new non-profits the SBVCA remains active in their community. In 2013, the Association's board approved the lease with the San Bernardino Municipal Water Department for the abandoned adobe building on 11th Street. The building was dedicated in honor of Ernest and Dorothy Garcia for their many contributions to the visual and performing arts. On November 16th, 2015 it was named the Garcia Center for the Arts. A home for creatives and art organizations the Garcia Center is a sturdy foundation for San Bernardino's art renaissance.
Operating as usual
04/11/2022
April 2022 - Welcome Spring
Are you subscribed to our newsletter? Take a look at what's in store for the month of April.
https://myemail.constantcontact.com/April-2022---Welcome-Spring.html?soid=1132690773103&aid=aT7OKApwn8I
Grow creativity like gardens. PLANT TREES SAN BERNARDINO April 9, 10am-1pm click to view larger Thanks to Inland Empire Resource Conservation District & California Climate Action Corps, over a hundred
02/23/2022
This SUNDAY.
Join us for a watercolor class that will incorporate the study of botanicals, as well as on light and color.
All experience levels welcome.
Bring a friend, and receive a discount on the ticket price.
Register HERE:
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/watercolor-botanicals-tickets-267725824147
02/16/2022
Info Webinar: Caravanserai Project: DREAM Fund Grant Program
Learn about the Dream Fund Micro-Grant Program and the opportunity to be awarded up to $10,000 in seed investments!
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/info-webinar-caravanserai-project-dream-fund-grant-program-tickets-264789120387
Info Webinar for the DREAM Fund Grant Program and the Business Readiness Training Program
02/16/2022
Arts Now Community Leader Application
BECOME AN ARTS LEADER!
Create CA offers grant funds, resources, tools, leadership training and individualized help for Arts Now Leaders working in their community. Join us in the fight to increase funding for arts education in K-12 public schools and work to eliminate the inequities in access to the arts.
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSezudb3nrB0occroU4VtTE1bVpLiAy1U2EKWnft66kfNkkAfA/viewform
Thank you for your interest in applying to join the Arts Now Communities program! You are invited to complete the application below. Please do not hesitate to reach out if you have any questions: [email protected]. The mission of Create CA is to advocate for arts education in California K-12 publ...
02/02/2022
For more details and ticket link: https://www.instagram.com/p/CZSnBSzPmTg/
02/02/2022
JOIN US FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 4th!! From 5-10pm in downtown San Bernardino! We are excited to announce the Creative Grounds () takeover of The Little Gallery!
Jay McCrary () and Duan Kellum () of Creative Grounds will be exhibiting site-specific installations through out the months of February and March. The first of the works is titled, "Black to the Future: Hope and Liberation."
The opening reception will be held right around the corner from The Little Gallery, at Creative Grounds in the alley way. Specific details to be announced. You won't want to miss out!......
02/02/2022
Coming Up Later This Year... Alfonso Martinez Mendez Artist Show & Celebration ~ May 2022
Alfonso Martinez Mendez was born in Mexico City. At the age of 24 after a three-week long entrance exam, he was admitted to the well-known art school, La Esmeralda, where he studied under such artists as Ernesto Vasquez, Javier Arevalo and Rolando Arjona. In 1984, he won first place in the Academia de Artes. He then found work as an illustrator in the Mexican comic book industry.
In 2007, after 31 years in that field, he took what was to be a short trip to the US but decided to stay in California, one reason being nearly limitless opportunities for artists in the US. He currently dedicates his time to creating in a variety of media. Five of his murals grace the San Bernardino's Inland Career Education Center (second floor). Since coming to Southern California in 2007, Alfonso has exhibited in the San Bernardino County Building, San Bernardino’s Feldhym Library, California State University, San Bernardino, the Ontario Art Museum, the Latino Art Museum of Pomona, the San Bernardino Orange Show (yearly from 2010-2018) where he won 1st place in the open category in 2012 and honorable mention in 2016. In 2015 he won first place in the annual San Bernardino Art Association exhibit.
For more on artist Alfonso Martinez Mendez, please visit https://www.tlacuilarts.com/
02/02/2022
Bianca Gomez of Artoriety has put out an art challenge! Participate in the art cart gallery by donating and trading art supplies from this free, mobile resource. For more info, contact Bianca by email: [email protected] or on Instagram . 🖌✂️🖍
02/01/2022
⭐️⭐️✒️📝📖⭐️⭐️
Are you a teen writer and/or artist — or do you know a teen who creatively self-expresses? If so, check out this special opportunity! Inlandia: A Literary Journey has just opened for submissions for its FIFTH-ANNUAL online Teen Issue. Categories include art, book reviews, fiction, nonfiction, and poetry.
FREE.
For more information and to submit, please visit: https://inlandiaaliteraryjourney.submittable.com/submit
02/01/2022
Photos from Inlandia Institute's post
02/01/2022
In January, we had a lovely time celebrating Juanita Mantz’s book launch for “Tales of an Inland Empire Girl”. The day featured readings from Jacqueline Mantz and Romaine Washington along with snacks, drinks and a beautiful cake. 📚🎂
01/18/2022
Micro Grant - application info session
From our friends at Arts Connection:
"The Arts Innovator Micro Grant program offers individual artists one-time grants of $500 and $1,000 for project support, career advancement, and or professional development support on a one-time basis. Artists must live and work in San Bernardino County."
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/micro-grant-application-info-session-tickets-243262202797?aff=ebdssbdestsearch
Short information session to walk you through the application process and answer questions about what kinds of project support we offer.
01/13/2022
Join the Indigenous Women's Talking Circle.
Now online for everyone's safety.
12/29/2021
We are inviting past ceramics workshop participants to glaze their bisque pieces. We are doing our best to create a sustainable ceramics program at the center, that conserves energy and resources but we also want everybody to have the opportunity to take their completed pieces home. We will be reaching out by phone and email to everyone that still needs to glaze. Thank you.
12/22/2021
JUST PLANT IT
Beautiful! Watch and learn a bit about Prime Hendrix and his story, as he's been gardening in the community of San Bernardino.
We love to see the stories in the community being told and shared.
Thanks to Pitzer College students Eve, Olivia and Owen!
A film by Eve Bishop, Owen Halstead, and Olivia McGrath Produced in the EcoDocumentary course at Pitzer College, Fall 2021 in collaboration with the Robert Redford…
12/21/2021
Photos from Assemblymember James C. Ramos's post
12/01/2021
OPEN CALL for artwork is up. The deadline is January 3rd.
The Land of Milk and Honey will be held at multiple art institutions in California and Mexico. This project will focus on concepts of agriculture, navigating discourses and notions around labor, food (in)security, environmental impacts, land use, farming practices, and food justice in the binational region of California and Baja California.
Click HERE for more info: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1LhYzd8GBB9v08Sot5Tjuq0j3dYzm578EupzMeW3joCk/edit
12/01/2021
Save the Date ~ December 15
Enjoy an evening of holiday classic music with the Empire Wind Ensemble. There will be hot cocoa and sweet treats to enjoy as well!
More info coming soon.
12/01/2021
We have officially come to the end of 2021. We are amazed at how quickly another year has passed us by. A lot of amazing things happened this year at The Garcia Center for the Arts. From concerts, workshops, to dance performances and gallery shows. We are very grateful to each and every one of you for being there, supporting the arts and the community of San Bernardino. All of it would not be possible without you.
We are looking forward to strengthening our bonds and collaborations in 2022. We are eternally grateful to every volunteer that has graced the Garcia Center this year, in the past and in the future.
In November alone, we were happy to invite local writers and artists, Isabel Quintero, Alex Avila, and Sandra Gonzalez-Mora for the Kid Lit Party. Ceramics artist Lucy Sunga hosted the second Storytelling with Clay workshop. We also had the community come together to put the first trees and plants in the garden, as well as a wonderful Sip N Plant event with the CA Immigrant Youth Justice Alliance, just to name a bit of what happened this past month.
Photos courtesy of Lucy Sunga (ceramics), CIYJA and Zavis Jimenez (garden) and Inlandia Institute (authors).
11/20/2021
From earlier this month
11/03/2021
Photos from Arts Connection, The Arts Council of San Bernardino County's post
11/03/2021
OPEN CALL for artwork is up. The deadline is January 3rd.
The Land of Milk and Honey will be held at multiple art institutions in California and Mexico. This project will focus on concepts of agriculture, navigating discourses and notions around labor, food (in)security, environmental impacts, land use, farming practices, and food justice in the binational region of California and Baja California.
Click HERE for more info: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1LhYzd8GBB9v08Sot5Tjuq0j3dYzm578EupzMeW3joCk/edit
OPEN CALL for artworks is up. Deadline is January 3. Link in bio for info.
The Land of Milk and Honey will inaugurate in 2022 and continue throughout 2023 and will be held at multiple arts institutions in California and Mexico. By focusing on concepts of Agriculture, the MB seeks dynamic proposals that navigate discourses and notions around labor, food (in)security, environmental impacts, land use, farming practices, and food justice in the binational region of California and Baja California.
🥦🍓🥑🥜🌮
CONVOCATORIA ABIERTA
El programa comenzará en 2022 y se extenderá a lo largo de 2023, y tomará lugar en varias instituciones y espacios de arte tanto en California como en México. Este programa se centrará en conceptos relacionados a la Agricultura, y busca propuestas dinámicas que indaguen en los discursos y las nociones que han surgido alrededor del trabajo, la (in)estabilidad alimentaria, los impactos ambientales, el uso de la tierra, las prácticas agrícolas y la justicia alimentaria en la región binacional que abarca a California y a Baja California.
11/02/2021
The Center for Cultural Innovation is offering grants of up to $5,000 to CA changemakers, whose bold actions are shifting the arts & culture sector in ways that give underrepresents groups more power and influence.
Click HERE for more info: https://www.cciarts.org/cgi/page.cgi/cali_grants.htm
APPLY BY NOV 15:
CALI Catalyst grants up to $5K to CA changemakers whose bold actions are shifting the arts & culture sector in ways that give BIPOC, LGBTQIA+, and people with disabilities more power and influence.
https://www.cciarts.org/cgi/page.cgi/cali_grants.htm
11/02/2021
Young Perceptions: Legends of the IE
On October 23rd, we had a Photovoice Project Exhibition, presented by SBX: Youth & Family Services. Young storytellers presented their final projects to community members. It was wonderful to hear from the youth, about how they see their community, their culture, and their roots in the IE.
11/02/2021
🎼 Rehearsals every Wednesday evening from 7 to 9pm at The Garcia Center for the Arts. To join and for more information, please contact Ruben at (909) 709-1565. 🎼
Formed in 2016, the Empire Wind Ensemble is a community concert band open to new members wanting to hone their musical skills. Composed of some of the best musicians in the Inland Empire, the Empire Wind Ensemble plays a wide repertoire and holds regular concerts. We’re a San Bernardino-based concert band organized for the purpose of advancing the cultural, civic, music education, and general interest of the appreciation of performing arts within the Inland Empire and surrounding communities.
11/02/2021
------- Ticket Link Below ------
Get a sneak preview at The Garcia Center (during our Kid Lit Party on Nov 20), but make sure to check out the full “Teeny Tiny Puppet Show Festival,” from CSUSB Professor Johanna Smith. The Teeny Tiny Puppet Show Festival is a travelling puppet production, featuring a collection of short stories written and created by puppetry students, all told in the Brazilian “Teatro Lambe Lambe” style. Each puppet story takes place inside a miniature set box with puppets and sets designed by the creator of each tale.
Purchase CSUSB Department of Theatre Arts tickets HERE: https://www.purplepass.com/#224662/CSUSB-The_Teeny_Tiny_Puppet_Show_Festival-Performing_Arts_Black_Box_Theatre-December-03-2021.html
11/01/2021
🌱 🌿 🔨 We want to say thank you as well, to everyone that joined us on October 16th to build the raised planting beds. Thank you to Inland Empire Resource Conservation District, to IEHP and every single community member that came out to support. It means so much to us. We learned so much from everyone and gained a lot of confidence in our building skills.
This is just the beginning of the garden. We are so excited to see the garden bloom.
10/29/2021
The DTSB Artwalk will be taking the time to give thanks this month. Instead of a traditional art walk event, the community is invited to share a dinner together and to learn about all of the wonderful artists, organizations and resources there are in San Bernardino.
We would love to invite you to join us at our next artwalk Event, we are actually feeding the community, if you want to join us or volunteer please message us 🙂
10/07/2021
October 2021 - Local culture
https://conta.cc/3a6s2V3
Make sure you stay connected with us by subscribing to our newsletter!
Watch, create, listen, learn. EMPIRE WIND ENSEMBLE Wednesdays, 7-9PM Rehearsals every Wednesday evening from 7 to 9pm at The Garcia Center for the Arts. To join and for more information, please contac
10/04/2021
Keep an eye out for “The Teeny Tiny Puppet Show Festival,” from CSUSB Professor Johanna Smith. The Teeny Tiny Puppet Show Festival is a travelling puppet production, featuring a collection of short stories written and created by puppetry students, all told in the Brazilian “Teatro Lambe Lambe” style. Each puppet story takes place inside a miniature set box with puppets and sets designed by the creator of each tale.
10/04/2021
Life in SoCal - San Bernardino Garcia Center for the Arts
Back in July, we held an opening ceremony for the garden at The Garcia Center. We are thankful to have had John Shollenberger of Life In Socal present that day to capture the event.
Watch the video recapping highlights of that day, featuring interviews with community members, including interviews with Dr. Ernie & Dr. Dotti Garcia, namesakes of the Garcia Center for the Arts.
Watch the video for yourself at the link below and make sure to subscribe to the YouTube channel, LifeInSoCalStudios: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cD8vVy2iFo8&t=1556s
John Shollenberger attends the San Bernardino Garcia Center for the Arts - Garden Center grand opening celebration. He speaks with several members of the fac...
10/04/2021
October 22nd: The Downtown San Bernardino Art Walk
Go out and support the artists and creatives in San Bernardino at the next art walk in Downtown. A good momentum is building in San Bernardino. We hope to see you there!
Address
536 W. 11th Street
San Bernardino, CA
92410
Opening Hours
| Monday | 9am - 3pm |
| Tuesday | 9:30am - 3pm |
| Wednesday | 9am - 3pm |
| Thursday | 9am - 3pm |
| Friday | 9am - 3pm |
Telephone
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Be the first to know and let us send you an email when The Garcia Center for the Arts posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.
Contact The Museum
Send a message to The Garcia Center for the Arts:
Videos
Meet Erok the Lion @erokthelion_art Video Clip by Sofia the Warrior @sofiathewarrior Erok is a multi-talented artist from San Bernardino, who has created many murals in a number of cities throughout California. Currently artist in residence at The Garcia Center, get to know him and his work, focusing on the abstract and figurative, with elements of pop art and graffiti all in one.
Tamara Cedré’s exhibition “Revelar, Recontar, Reclamar” will open Saturday, December 28 from 4-10PM at The Little Gallery of San Bernardino. @the_little_gallery_sb Then, on January 17th at 4pm, join us here at The Garcia Center for the Arts for a film screening and talk with the artist Tamara Cedré. In an act of reclamation, Cedré constructs an archive of found, contested, and reimagined photographs to serve as a site for understanding issues surrounding the political status and identity of Puerto Ricans. #sbartsconnect #tammycedrephotography #puertorico
#Repost @kayjocreatives • • • • • • Please have interested high schoolers and teachers reach out to @kayjocreatives or @nataliejograham to participate in San Bernardino County’s Poetry Out Loud program. Poetry Out Loud is a national program that encourages high school students to memorize poems and recite them to win cash prizes for themselves and their schools. Our local winner will also receive an all-expenses paid trip to Sacramento and a chance to compete for a $20,000 national prize. #poetry #poetryoutloud #sanbernardino #create #art #highschool #community #poetsofinstagram #poet #createcommunity #honorhumanity #AmplifyIE #sbartsconnect
We love it when people visit us at the center, especially when it's artists and friends, like Yeni & Joe of the San Bernardino Arts Association. They added a touch of their talent to the center's turtle. Whenever you visit us, you can contribute to painting it too.
Musicians from San G High School, also known as The Brass Boys playing at the Garcia Center right now
Join us on March 11th for a performance from the Urban Empire Quintet. #sbarts #sanbernardino
Give it up for Ernie’s first boomerang! 😎 Día de los Mu***os celebration.
Uncle Bacons Printmaking Workshops
Check out this simple video on how to get to the Garcia Center's Printshop and watch Uncle Bacon print his halloween zine. For more information look at our events section or read below. ---------------- Introduction to Linocut Relief Printmaking Workshop ------------ Saturdays 11am-2pm $15.00 Registration fee covers linoleum, inks, and enough paper for an edition. Carving tools will be provided for your use, too. Community members of all levels are welcome to attend. All you need is a creative spark and a favorite image that you want to make a linoleum print out of. We will show you how to transfer the image to a block of linoleum, how to carve it out, demonstrate some inking techniques, and show you how to use our etching press for making relief prints. You can expect to complete an edition of 5 - 4”x6” prints on paper. --------------------- Open Studio with Uncle Bacon ---------------------- Saturdays 11am-2pm $5.00 studio fee The Open Studio is designed to increase creativity and encourage experimentation in a safe place, where cultural exchange, conversation, encouragement, and freedom of expression can thrive.
Music+Community = HARMONY JOIN AQUATL IN THE WONDERFUL SOUND OF MUSIC at Garcia Center for the Arts, next month August 12th at 10am.
Shortcuts
Category
Nearby museums
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First Original McDonald's Museum
1398 N E St -
San Bernardino Historical & Pioneer Society
796 N. D. St. -
399 N D St
-
399 N. D Street
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1590 N Waterman Ave
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San Bernardino Route 66 Museum
1248 W 5th St -
San Bernardino History & Railroad Museum
1170 W 3rd St -
1601 E 3rd St
Other Community Museums in San Bernardino
-
San Bernardino Historical & Pioneer Society
796 N. D. St.
Comments
Works of faith,hope and love,www.faopal.hu
Works of faith,hope and love,www.faopal.hu
In the spirit of the holiday season, my staff stopped by The Garcia Center for the Arts to donate toys for their Toy Drive.
The toy drive is accompanied by a public gallery "A Street Affair", highlighting the art of local artists. Check it out until December 28th and donate a toy for children in our community if you wish.
The toy drive is accompanied by a public gallery "A Street Affair", highlighting the art of local artists. Check it out until December 28th and donate a toy for children in our community if you wish.
Already signed-up but couldn't make it out the The Garcia Center for the Arts this Saturday? Still interested in a crate? It's not too late. Please use the link for the google form so I have a way of reaching out.
Saniyyah Thomas Heredia from Connection is there Tues - Friday 12-4 (909)381-1900. She is the super friendly and would love to introduce you to the center
https://forms.gle/ADTWokpb2G9v5nCq7
Saniyyah Thomas Heredia from Connection is there Tues - Friday 12-4 (909)381-1900. She is the super friendly and would love to introduce you to the center
https://forms.gle/ADTWokpb2G9v5nCq7
🎶SEE YOU TOMORROW!!🎤
The City of San Bernardino Parks, Recreation & Community Services Department kicks off its Sizzling Summer Nights Concert Series with TEASE!
On Friday, July 9th from 7:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. the City of San Bernardino Parks, Recreation and Community Services Department kicks off its Sizzling Summer Nights Concert Series with a special presentation by the Top-40s band TEASE. The concert will take place at Fiscalini Field located at 1135 East Highland Avenue in San Bernardino.
Doors open at 5:30 p.m. for pre-concert festivities. Patrons are invited to arrive early and enjoy dinner from one of the food trucks onsite, or visit the information fair featuring local social service agencies. Admission is free, CLICK THE LINK to pre-register, space is limited.
The City of San Bernardino Parks, Recreation & Community Services Department kicks off its Sizzling Summer Nights Concert Series with TEASE!
On Friday, July 9th from 7:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. the City of San Bernardino Parks, Recreation and Community Services Department kicks off its Sizzling Summer Nights Concert Series with a special presentation by the Top-40s band TEASE. The concert will take place at Fiscalini Field located at 1135 East Highland Avenue in San Bernardino.
Doors open at 5:30 p.m. for pre-concert festivities. Patrons are invited to arrive early and enjoy dinner from one of the food trucks onsite, or visit the information fair featuring local social service agencies. Admission is free, CLICK THE LINK to pre-register, space is limited.
Our local arts need support and I worked to get $1 million for the
The Garcia Center for the Arts Join me and promote the arts.
Learn more -
https://www.sbvca.org/garcia-center/
The Garcia Center for the Arts Join me and promote the arts.
Learn more -
https://www.sbvca.org/garcia-center/
Garcia Center for the Arts growing programs and community connections
Source: Inland Empire Community Foundation
In 2013, the San Bernardino Valley Concert Association saw tremendous potential in the abandoned adobe building on 11th Street in San Bernardino.
Between E Street and Baseline, the organization believed it could launch a neighborhood revitalization through the arts at the site. The organization signed a 99-year lease with San Bernardino Municipal Water Department and dedicated its new center — that adobe building on 11th Street — to Ernest and Dorothy Garcia for their many contributions to the visual and performing arts.
Today, The Garcia Center for the Arts offers a home base for art organizations and is becoming a hub for a growing arts community in the city. In addition to providing office space for organizations including the San Bernardino Symphony and the Inlandia Institute, the center offers an auditorium, conference room, gallery, library, classroom, and outdoor patio space.
Prior to the pandemic, the center also offered events including, small chamber orchestra concerts and classes in ceramics, printmaking, and writing. In an average year, the center reaches over 1,000 people through events and activities.
“There is so much talent in our community that is untapped because there is no platform for it,” the organization’s Executive Director Jorge Oswald Heredia said. “We want to be a space where people can find and develop their creativity.”
Following Ernest Garcia’s retirement as volunteer executive director in June 2002, Heredia came on board as the Garcia Center for the Art’s first paid employee. Heredia was introduced to the Center and Ernest Garcia as a volunteer helping with the building’s renovations when it was first acquired. Heredia said that he continues to depend on Garcia for his advice, wisdom, and vision.
During the pandemic, Garcia Center has opened to small film projects created by students at San Bernardino Valley College. Artists have also taken up residence at the center, where they are able to maintain social distancing while working in one of the center’s spaces.
The organization has also worked to make use of its outdoor spaces, developing a community garden.
“We have a lot of potential because a lot of what we do is based on collaboration,” Heredia said. “As things open up more, we’re hoping to host film screenings and utilize the outdoor space as much as possible.”
Its place in the neighborhood and connection to the community are important. Since the Garcia Center has opened, several galleries in the neighborhood have also opened their doors. Heredia feels the center has helped strengthen the community. With renovations completed, he plans to bring on more staff and increase programming.
The neighborhood around the Garcia Center has been hard hit by COVID-19. Partnering with Loma Linda University Health Center, the organization will be holding a coronavirus vaccine clinic on May 14. Anyone who needs vaccinated is welcome. Heredia hopes the Garcia Center’s connection with the community will encourage individuals who have been reluctant or unable to travel to get their vaccines. Details on the clinic will be available soon on the organization’s website and page.
Recently, Garcia Center for the Arts received a San Bernardino County Covid Relief grant through the Inland Empire Community Foundation.
Heredia hopes that more of the community will support the center and encourages artists and art groups to use the space. He also welcomes the community’s input for how the space can be used to encourage arts and creativity in the area.
“Connect with the center. Come and explore our programs,” Heredia said. “We would love to work with more artists and art organizations.”
Information: https://www.sbvca.org/garcia-center or 909-888-6400.
Inland Empire Community Foundation works to strengthen Inland Southern California through philanthropy.
Photos:
1. Keya Vance films a musical performance by Milpa (Oscar Rivas, Jose Ledezma, Ivan McCormick & America Najera) at The Garcia Center for the Arts.
2. Performance by Dino Brass (Heveer Rocha, Angel Rivas, Ricardo Perez, Isaac Armenta, and Qione Bell Owens)
Source: Inland Empire Community Foundation
In 2013, the San Bernardino Valley Concert Association saw tremendous potential in the abandoned adobe building on 11th Street in San Bernardino.
Between E Street and Baseline, the organization believed it could launch a neighborhood revitalization through the arts at the site. The organization signed a 99-year lease with San Bernardino Municipal Water Department and dedicated its new center — that adobe building on 11th Street — to Ernest and Dorothy Garcia for their many contributions to the visual and performing arts.
Today, The Garcia Center for the Arts offers a home base for art organizations and is becoming a hub for a growing arts community in the city. In addition to providing office space for organizations including the San Bernardino Symphony and the Inlandia Institute, the center offers an auditorium, conference room, gallery, library, classroom, and outdoor patio space.
Prior to the pandemic, the center also offered events including, small chamber orchestra concerts and classes in ceramics, printmaking, and writing. In an average year, the center reaches over 1,000 people through events and activities.
“There is so much talent in our community that is untapped because there is no platform for it,” the organization’s Executive Director Jorge Oswald Heredia said. “We want to be a space where people can find and develop their creativity.”
Following Ernest Garcia’s retirement as volunteer executive director in June 2002, Heredia came on board as the Garcia Center for the Art’s first paid employee. Heredia was introduced to the Center and Ernest Garcia as a volunteer helping with the building’s renovations when it was first acquired. Heredia said that he continues to depend on Garcia for his advice, wisdom, and vision.
During the pandemic, Garcia Center has opened to small film projects created by students at San Bernardino Valley College. Artists have also taken up residence at the center, where they are able to maintain social distancing while working in one of the center’s spaces.
The organization has also worked to make use of its outdoor spaces, developing a community garden.
“We have a lot of potential because a lot of what we do is based on collaboration,” Heredia said. “As things open up more, we’re hoping to host film screenings and utilize the outdoor space as much as possible.”
Its place in the neighborhood and connection to the community are important. Since the Garcia Center has opened, several galleries in the neighborhood have also opened their doors. Heredia feels the center has helped strengthen the community. With renovations completed, he plans to bring on more staff and increase programming.
The neighborhood around the Garcia Center has been hard hit by COVID-19. Partnering with Loma Linda University Health Center, the organization will be holding a coronavirus vaccine clinic on May 14. Anyone who needs vaccinated is welcome. Heredia hopes the Garcia Center’s connection with the community will encourage individuals who have been reluctant or unable to travel to get their vaccines. Details on the clinic will be available soon on the organization’s website and page.
Recently, Garcia Center for the Arts received a San Bernardino County Covid Relief grant through the Inland Empire Community Foundation.
Heredia hopes that more of the community will support the center and encourages artists and art groups to use the space. He also welcomes the community’s input for how the space can be used to encourage arts and creativity in the area.
“Connect with the center. Come and explore our programs,” Heredia said. “We would love to work with more artists and art organizations.”
Information: https://www.sbvca.org/garcia-center or 909-888-6400.
Inland Empire Community Foundation works to strengthen Inland Southern California through philanthropy.
Photos:
1. Keya Vance films a musical performance by Milpa (Oscar Rivas, Jose Ledezma, Ivan McCormick & America Najera) at The Garcia Center for the Arts.
2. Performance by Dino Brass (Heveer Rocha, Angel Rivas, Ricardo Perez, Isaac Armenta, and Qione Bell Owens)
Thank you The Garcia Center for the Arts for the awesome tour of your beautiful space! We are excited to have you as a community partner!
Actors looking for a meaningful project? San Bernardino Valley College is creating a piece dealing with addiction! Actors of all abilities and experience, including NONE! Auditions on Monday. The contact info is on the poster!
Dr. Ernest Felix Garcia has retired from the Garcia Center for the Arts in San Bernardino
Photo: Dr. Ernest Garcia, donned in an original plaid Beach Boys shirt, has brought immense opportunity through art to the San Bernardino community.
On July 2, 2020, Dr. Ernest Garcia retired as executive director from the Garcia Center for the Arts in San Bernardino after five years.
While volunteering as executive director, Garcia has led his vision of renovating a historic building in downtown San Bernardino, the Garcia Center for the Arts, in which he has implemented community programs such as music, poetry, and art.
“The Garcia Center for the Arts was dedicated to my wife Dottie and me. After five years I have chosen to retire and I want to say thank you to the community. It has been a great cap for me. What have I done in the arts? I sang…I’ve even acted and created a lot of art,” said Garcia.
Along with generating lots of art over the span of his 70-plus-year career, Garcia credits his formal education achievements for providing him endless opportunity.
“In 1950 I graduated from San Bernardino Valley College (SBVC) with an associate’s in social sciences and Spanish, then in 1955 I was the first Chicano to ever graduate from University of California, Riverside (UCR) with a bachelor’s in social sciences, in 1960 I graduated from University of Redlands (U of R) with a master’s in administration and counseling, and in 1966 I graduated from University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) with a doctorate in educational technology,” shared Garcia.
After obtaining his associate’s degree, in 1951, Garcia enlisted in the Air Force, serving four years as a staff sergeant during the Korean War.
“Even back in the Air Force, I was heavily into the arts. At the time swing music was such a big deal and my friends and I would often play together on the base in Korea. I can even recall going out to the dive bars and their version of swing music was a little bit awful. So we befriended many of the Korean musicians that were playing at these dive bars and brought back as many of them to the base to teach them how to play swing music,” Garcia said.
He joked that after they taught the Korean musicians how to perfect their swing musicianship, the complaints went away.
After serving in the Air Force, Garcia went on to teach in Barstow (where he became a vice principal at 26 years old), Rialto, Redlands, and eventually teaching at Cal State San Bernardino, and served as dean of the College of Education before retiring in 1990.
“Although I am retiring from the Garcia Center, I am not going to stop creating. I have three art projects waiting for me to tend to in my garage right now and the Garcia Center will also continue to flourish. Moving forward, we hope to grow the music program and I’m sure my successor, Jorge Osvaldo Heredia, who currently serves as president of the board that oversees the center, is going to serve the community well,” concluded Garcia.
Along with being a board member of many San Bernardino art organizations, Garcia is a local Chicano activist who garnered a meeting with President Ronald Reagan’s office in the 1980s to push for Hispanic Heritage Month. For more information, follow The Garcia Center for the Arts on Facebook.
Source Inland Empire Community Newspapers
http://iecn.com/dr-ernest-felix-garcia-has-retired-from-the-garcia-center-for-the-arts-in-san-bernardino/?
Photo: Dr. Ernest Garcia, donned in an original plaid Beach Boys shirt, has brought immense opportunity through art to the San Bernardino community.
On July 2, 2020, Dr. Ernest Garcia retired as executive director from the Garcia Center for the Arts in San Bernardino after five years.
While volunteering as executive director, Garcia has led his vision of renovating a historic building in downtown San Bernardino, the Garcia Center for the Arts, in which he has implemented community programs such as music, poetry, and art.
“The Garcia Center for the Arts was dedicated to my wife Dottie and me. After five years I have chosen to retire and I want to say thank you to the community. It has been a great cap for me. What have I done in the arts? I sang…I’ve even acted and created a lot of art,” said Garcia.
Along with generating lots of art over the span of his 70-plus-year career, Garcia credits his formal education achievements for providing him endless opportunity.
“In 1950 I graduated from San Bernardino Valley College (SBVC) with an associate’s in social sciences and Spanish, then in 1955 I was the first Chicano to ever graduate from University of California, Riverside (UCR) with a bachelor’s in social sciences, in 1960 I graduated from University of Redlands (U of R) with a master’s in administration and counseling, and in 1966 I graduated from University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) with a doctorate in educational technology,” shared Garcia.
After obtaining his associate’s degree, in 1951, Garcia enlisted in the Air Force, serving four years as a staff sergeant during the Korean War.
“Even back in the Air Force, I was heavily into the arts. At the time swing music was such a big deal and my friends and I would often play together on the base in Korea. I can even recall going out to the dive bars and their version of swing music was a little bit awful. So we befriended many of the Korean musicians that were playing at these dive bars and brought back as many of them to the base to teach them how to play swing music,” Garcia said.
He joked that after they taught the Korean musicians how to perfect their swing musicianship, the complaints went away.
After serving in the Air Force, Garcia went on to teach in Barstow (where he became a vice principal at 26 years old), Rialto, Redlands, and eventually teaching at Cal State San Bernardino, and served as dean of the College of Education before retiring in 1990.
“Although I am retiring from the Garcia Center, I am not going to stop creating. I have three art projects waiting for me to tend to in my garage right now and the Garcia Center will also continue to flourish. Moving forward, we hope to grow the music program and I’m sure my successor, Jorge Osvaldo Heredia, who currently serves as president of the board that oversees the center, is going to serve the community well,” concluded Garcia.
Along with being a board member of many San Bernardino art organizations, Garcia is a local Chicano activist who garnered a meeting with President Ronald Reagan’s office in the 1980s to push for Hispanic Heritage Month. For more information, follow The Garcia Center for the Arts on Facebook.
Source Inland Empire Community Newspapers
http://iecn.com/dr-ernest-felix-garcia-has-retired-from-the-garcia-center-for-the-arts-in-san-bernardino/?
"Raíces y Alas" en el cierre de la de México en Consulado de México en San Bernardino, California
Gracias The Garcia Center for the Arts, , , , , , , por hacerlo posible! 🎉🙏🙏😍
Gracias The Garcia Center for the Arts, , , , , , , por hacerlo posible! 🎉🙏🙏😍