A new fine arts gallery will opened its doors recently in Eureka.
During the past summer, HSU’s First Street Gallery closed its doors, moving two blocks south to a new location. Along the way, the gallery changed its name to the Humboldt State University Third Street Gallery. The gallery will open in the new space on October 1, during Eureka’s monthly Arts Alive program, featuring exhibitions by Leslie Kenneth Price and by Gina Tuzzi.
While the university is changing the site of its Eureka gallery venue, the approach to producing exhibitions and programs that appeal to a broad range of interests will remain the same as it has during its previous 19-year run at its old location. As with its former site, the gallery will continue to provide HSU students in the University’s Museum and Gallery Practices Certificate Program with hands-on experience in museum and gallery vocations.
Third Street Gallery Director Jack Bentley says, “After years at our former gallery site, we came to the conclusion that we had to change the way that we used the exhibition and production spaces to better suit our program goals. We couldn’t find a way to do this in the old gallery. So we had to design a new one. HSU Third Street Gallery will better accommodate student activities while supporting the University’s strategic plan. We’ll also realize significant energy savings, which adheres to the university’s goal to reduce its carbon footprint. We can do all this in the new site while maintaining a high-quality fine arts exhibition facility.”
Bentley goes on to say that, “Nineteen years ago, with the establishment of HSU First Street Gallery, the university claimed a stake in the economic stimulus and redevelopment efforts taking place in Old Town, Eureka. Nineteen years on, our new gallery, HSU Third Street Gallery, clearly represents the continuity of that commitment, to provide a fine arts gallery that is at once an economic and cultural anchor located in the heart of the North Coast community.”
The opening solo exhibitions by Price, a retired HSU painting professor, and Tuzzi, a current Department of Art lecturer, will run from October 1 through November 6. The gallery will be open Tuesdays through Sundays from noon to 5 p.m. and closed on Mondays. Humboldt State University Third Street Gallery is located at 416 Third Street Eureka, California. For more information, call (707) 443-6363. The gallery’s new website will soon be completed and will be found at www.humboldt.edu/first.