Cindy Stiles, a member of the Bakersfield Art Association, finishes a painting in the organization’s East Hills Mall gallery. The sculpture in front of her is “Omega Man” by Ray Dooley. Photo by Jennifer Baldwin

The Bakersfield Art Association has cancelled its plans to close its gallery in the East Hills Mall – for now, according to president Kathy Schilling. Photo by Jennifer Baldwin

The Bakersfield Museum of Art at 1930 R St. Photo by Jennifer Baldwin

The foyer of the Bakersfield Museum of Art features "Volcanic Basin and Range" by Laddie John Dill. Photo by Jennifer Baldwin

By Jennifer Baldwin

When the Fresno Metropolitan Museum closed for good due to financial losses earlier this month, operators of public galleries in Bakersfield watched with sadness. But they also resolved to continue making necessary decisions to remain healthy throughout this economic downturn.

The Bakersfield Museum of Art has already cut staff and hours in response to a 25 percent reduction in revenue. The Bakersfield Art Association is taking its time to find an affordable venue before moving out of the bankrupt East Hills Mall. And the Arts Council of Kern is consolidating its gallery space at the Younger Gallery and using the Reider Gallery for administrative offices.

The moves, leaders say, will help their organizations weather the storm and continue bringing arts and art education to the public.

“We’re very fortunate,” said Bernie Herman, director of the Bakersfield Museum of Art. “We’ve anticipated some of these challenges. But I think next year will be tougher.”

One thing the Fresno Met had that Bakersfield Museum of Art doesn’t have is debt. While the Fresno Met sank under a multi-million dollar renovation project, Bakersfield Museum of Art paid off its post-renovation mortgage after Herman came on board in 2004. At that time, the museum still owed $1.1 million on its 2000-2001 expansion.

“We are healthy. We’re fortunate we have paid off our debt. We operate on at least a break-even basis,” Herman said.

He did have to let go of two part-time art teacher positions due to canceled contracts with local schools. But the museum is still operating seven days a week with three full-time and eight part-time staff members.

In addition to not having debt, the Bakersfield Museum of Art also has some very generous donors, Herman said. The museum makes the most of major donations by protecting them in endowments, he added.

The Bakersfield Art Association – a nonprofit cooperative of local artists – is facing a very different problem. Its landlord, the East Hills Mall, is in the middle of Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings. The association’s president, Kathy Schilling, said the cooperative is remaining in its 4,000-square-foot gallery while its members look for less spacious options downtown.

“We want to be a part of and promote the Downtown Arts District,” said Schilling, who would also like to see the increased foot traffic a downtown presence could bring.

The problem is finding a space downtown as cheap as the mall. In fact, after the Art Association announced it would close its doors at the East Hills Mall Jan. 29, mall officials met with Art Association leaders to negotiate them staying a little longer. According to Schilling, their already discounted rent may be reduced even further as the mall tries to keep its tenants in place.

Schilling also said the Art Association has found one potential location downtown, and pending a board vote Wednesday, Jan. 27, may move ahead with it. If both locations remain financially feasible, the Art Association may keep their space at the mall as well.

“Basically we’ll keep (the mall location) open a while longer and keep trying to open a smaller location downtown. Those are our plans right now,” Schilling said.

The Arts Council of Kern knows what it’s like to operate two locations. It has the Younger Gallery at 1440 Truxtun Ave. and the Reider Gallery at 2000 K St.

But two galleries mean twice the exhibits and twice the openings – something the arts council has decided to pull back on for now. Instead, the Arts Council will consolidate most of its staff at the K Street location and use the Younger Gallery as its primary public art venue.

“We’ll also be putting more energy into the JP Jennings Center for the Arts,” said Arts Council director Jeanette Richardson Parks. “(Owner) Justin Jennings has donated the corner for us to use as a gallery and workshop space.”

JP Jennings is a custom framing shop at 1700 Chester Avenue. Richardson Parks says nationally funding is down 10 percent for arts organizations.

For all three arts organizations, they are continuing to find innovative ways to raise money locally. The Arts Council of Kern is planning a Walk for the Arts in May. (Stay tuned for more details on Bakersfield Express.)

The organizations also have these events scheduled:

• The Arts Council of Kern’s next exhibit opening at the Younger Gallery is Friday, Jan. 29. “Down the Rabbit Hole” features artwork inspired by Lewis Carroll’s “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland.” The reception is from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. and costs $5 for admission. For details, go to www.kernarts.org.

• The Bakersfield Art Association is hosting a Mardi Gras Gala on Feb. 19 at the Bell Tower Club. Tickets are $75 and includes food, entertainment, a silent auction and art show. Visit www.mardigrasgala.com for details.

• The Bakersfield Museum of Art is accepting donations of artwork for an auction and sale of previously-owned art. The Art-A-Go-Go event will be in two parts: An early bird auction/sale and cocktail party on March 18 and a public sale on March 20. Visit www.bmoa.org for more information.