Santa Ana is committed to fostering arts and creativity in its community, so it’s no surprise that the city collaborated to create the Grand Central Art Center, a unit of California State University, Fullerton – College of the Arts. The center is committed to engaging with contemporary art and visual culture in an open manner, locally, regionally, nationally, and internationally through socially engaged connections among artists, students, and members of the public. Now the public can tour the space and see artists at work, explore galleries, and appreciate art all in one place.
Getting There
The Grand Central Art Center is located on the heart of downtown Santa Ana’s 2nd Street Promenade, which runs along with Broadway and Second Street. The center is easily accessible via the I-5 Broadway and Main Street exits. Bus stops that are near to Grand Central include Second/Broadway, 1st/Main, and 1st/Ross. The following busses service these stations: 64/64X, 53/53X
What to Expect
The City of Santa Ana and California State University at Fullerton collaborated to establish the beautiful Central Art Center in downtown Santa Ana, California. The art center is a six-building, mixed residential, commercial, and educational development located ten miles south of the main campus in the heart of downtown Santa Ana.
The Grand Central Arts & Culture Center is a three-story, 45,000 square foot city block long and half-city block deep structure that houses: The Main Gallery, Project Room, Education/Teaching Gallery, Grand Central Theater, Den Café, Breath of Fire Latin Theater Ensemble (on the lower level), The Wayward Artist , living/studio spaces for visual arts graduate students, and a studio and living space dedicated to the center’s international artist-in-residence program.
History
The Grand Central Market, now known as the Grand Central Art Center (GCAC), was built in 1922 as the primary market for Orange County. The structure was a single-story and had stalls for independent grocers, fruit vendors, butchers, and other suppliers. It was located mid-block between First and Second Streets with doors facing both Broadway and Sycamore Street. In 1924, a two-story extension to the building was added.
The building’s replacement, which was completed in summer 2003, has twin glass-enclosed elevator cars and can handle 15 tons at a time. It includes two shops on the first floor, with five additional meeting rooms available for rent. The second story houses 29 residential apartments for sale as well as 12 storefronts on the ground floor. The facility’s most significant addition is an external staircase leading up to an exterior balcony that provides panoramic views of Newport Beach and its surrounding areas.
Visit the Grand Central Art Center
The Santa Ana Community Center was constructed as part of a larger effort to revitalize the city of Santa Ana. Its goal, like that of CAC’s current mission, was to offer services and provide a social center for the community. Furthermore, as GCAC was created by locals, it is dedicated to including all elements of the Santa Ana population through providing free public activities. Visit the center today and appreciate art and creativity in Santa Ana.
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