Sammy Gonzales, another local artist, feels there’s an unknown force that drives his pieces. As a Fresno native, his art reflects and portrays the area and its flavor. Though he has been interested in art for a very long time, he has only recently decided to take it up as a career after realizing his true love and talent for it.
Gonzales focuses on oil paints, digital media, illustration, and even photography.
Gonzales’ art includes dynamic colors and long strokes. Since he studied kinesiology in college, he likes to use his knowledge of the human body to breathe life into his art. “I really just give them free reign all the time, letting my inner child kind of take over and drive my limbs to create what they will,” Gonzales said.
Although there are many things that Gonzales enjoys about art, the most challenging thing for him is how people perceive or misread his art pieces. For Gonzales, “being misunderstood [or] constantly being under pressure to impress or show your skill” are big challenges.
Gonzalez feels that doing art in a city like Fresno is all about genuine passion. “Most artists I see in Fresno live it, breathe it and do it because Fresno has not been known for being the biggest art town in Cali,” said Gonzalez. “I think those that choose to do it here are the real deal because they are in it and that’s just what they do.”
Though many artists put out great work, some feel no recognition for it. Salazar also feels the recognition level is fairly low. She states, “Fresno does not support the arts very well. [People who buy art in Fresno] prefer to go out of town thinking they’re getting better quality, which is not necessarily true.”
Though Fresno may not be considered the artistic capital of the world, it is still a place where many artists are doing some great work. This work can be seen all along the walls of many buildings in the mural district and other parts of Fresno, and in pieces of local landmarks such as the Fresno Water Tower or the Veteran’s Memorial Auditorium. Fresno is fortunate to have raised talented artists, such as groups like The Muralistics and those devoted to beautifying Fresno’s Mural District along with other parts of downtown. “Big places I see art taking over,” said Gonzales, “[includes] the majority of the downtown area and really turning it into a place to chill and see art and experience raw creativity.”
In 2006, over 25 youth began participating in weekly after-school writing workshops where they congregated in the hallway of a two-story building in West Fresno and learned the essentials of creating media and telling their stories. The group evolved over the next five years and is now proudly recognized as The kNOw Youth Media.
Through our program, we create opportunities for our youth participants, who in turn create long-term positive change in their communities. Our approach weaves youth development and youth media innovation to produce our biannual youth publication, multimedia projects, and community forums.
The kNOw began as a project of New America Media, which was the country’s first and largest national collaboration and advocate of 2000 ethnic news organizations. In 2018 The kNOw became a project of Youth Leadership Institute.
