Desti nations
Channel your inner artist
in downtown Fresno by Kim Leonard
P
eople who hang out in downtown Fresno choose it as their place for myriad reasons. But if you were to survey 100 Tioga-Sequoia Beer Garden hipsters about what they love the most about downtown, chances are a pretty huge chunk of them would say something to the effect of the music and art scene. And 100 tipsy hipsters can’t be wrong, right? Right! Thanks to the Fresno Arts Council’s Art Hop activating the heck out of the Cultural Arts District, South Stadium and pockets along the Fulton Mall, more and more people are recognizing downtown as the place to go to consume art. What’s interesting is that the more people come downtown for music festivals, art shows and even fashion shows, the more opportunities pop up for people to get their creativity flowing in downtown Fresno. Here are some of the better art experiences in the downtown area: SUBLIME TIME EXPERIENCE When you think of who uses studio space at places such
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Central California Life
as M Street Arts Complex (1419 M Street), you probably imagine classically trained, fine artists who are covered in paint and talk about famous artworks with names you can’t pronounce. Would it surprise you to know that at Sublime Time, you, or your weird cousin, unimaginative co-worker, or fun-loving best friend are actually the artists? Well, you could be, anyway, if you sign up for a Sublime Time Experience. Artist and instructor Denine Bennet will guide you through the entire process of creating a work of art from first brush stroke to signing your name at the bottom. Basically, you show up, hang out and get to go home with a finished painting and the smug satisfaction of being an artist. You can learn more at www.sublimetimefun.com COLORING FOR GROWN-UPS AT PEEVE’S You can’t throw a grown-up diva tantrum these days without inadvertently knocking over a newsstand lined with coloring books for adults. The notion that coloring is a mindful practice has taken off, and it has become an alternative to meditation to many of the can’t-stop-checking-my-work-e-