NCA Artist Dan Wheeler
Neighborhood Center for the Arts Art • Advocacy • Opportunity
At NCA we make art, great art that’s easy on your wallet. But more than that, we change lives. Everyone needs a job, a place to find purpose and meaning in their life. For many Developmentally Disabled or Intellectually Challenged adults living in Nevada County, CA, that place is the Neighborhood Center of the Arts. Located in Grass Valley, we provide studio space and art materials as well as two in-house art galleries for exhibition opportunities. On any given weekday as many as 60 artists come to our studios to make art, learn living skills, work in the garden and hang out with their friends. We provide studios, materials and instruction in fiber arts, visual arts, clay, woodworking, jewelry, computers and performing arts as well as cooking, gardening and community outings. Our artists weave, paint, sculpt, build furniture, cook meals, sing, dance and volunteer at the library. At NCA we take out the ‘dis’ out of ‘disability’ and focus on what people can do.
Our Logo: The late Larry Mills was a client at the original Community Workshop. He was the person who inspired Gillian Hodge to apply for the arts grant, the seed that later became NCA. Larry was a prolific artist, known for flying coffee cups, frying pans and impossibly jointed men. Larry worked at NCA until his sudden death in 2011. We felt it fitting to honor his memory and base our logo on one of his drawings.
Our newest creative adventures NCA recently began offering instruction in photojournalism and Etsy Shop Management. Our Garden Biz group has been perfecting their recipe for hand crafted soap, now available at NCA or on Etsy! Art Side Out, our blog is now up and running. We have also implemented a new volunteer program offering a choice of two teams to work with. We’re very excited about these changes and we have more to come. NCA’s roots in Nevada County go back to 1966, when the Community Workshop was founded as a jobs training center for adults with developmental disabilities. Internationally acclaimed ceramicist, Gillian Hodge began an art program at the Community Workshop in 1973. Ten years later, the art program ended due to government cutbacks. In 1984, Hodge and supporters within the community founded the Neighborhood Center of the Arts, a new program to provide arts-based training and education We are a 501c3 non-profit corporation. All donations are fully tax deductible.
DESTINATION Nevada County
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