by Timothy Rutt
The Altadena Arts Council is planning to open a community arts facility at the Loma Alta School site, and is looking for instructors and volunteers aiming at a late September/early October opening.
The Pasadena Unified School District (PUSD) board agreed to the Altadena Arts Council's request to establish a center at the site of the school on a one-year basis, with the potential for renewal. According to Mary Ann Stevenson of the Altadena Arts Council, the district's arrangement with the arts council "is not unique and is similar to one enjoyed for a number of years by the old Pasadena Art Workshop, which later evolved into the Armory Center for the Arts."
Loma Alta School at 3544 N. Canon Blvd. is one of two Altadena schools that was shuttered by the PUSD this summer. The Loma Alta site will also hold the Pasadena Rosebud Academy charter school starting Sept. 6.
Borrowing lines from the Fort Worth Community Arts Center, Stevenson said in a release that she wants the community to “Imagine a place where children, youth and adults can immerse themselves in creativity - creating and exhibiting art, participating in music, dance and theatre workshops, participating in spoken word events, visiting galleries/museums and other cultural institutions, while gaining an appreciation of themselves and others."
Stevenson anticipates the center being open for business late September/early October. The arts council is looking for artists (coordinators and instructors for the art, music and dance disciplines are sought) as well as community volunteers interested in becoming a part of the arts center. The Altadena Arts Council can be contacted at 626-797-5798 and info@altadenaartscouncil.org.
