Gaylen Young and Don Martin talk highbrow art at Bakersfield's Metro Galleries - By N.L. Belardes

Channel 17's Gaylen Young talks to Don Martin

On April 12^th, the same day as the Noveltown mixer, I met legendary Bakersfield newscaster Gaylen Young from KGET channel 17 outside of the original location of Metro Galleries. It was a strange windy day to be near Eye and 20^th Street. Freeways were closed and there were a lot of accident reports coming in from news sources. Gaylen himself had to wait for his cameraman.

When he showed up, we greeted each other and walked inside. Right away we all realized we were in the wrong place, because even though the sign outside still read “Metro Galleries”, inside was an empty husk of an art gallery.

Gaylen apologized to a man sweeping the floor and soon enough we walked to a much better gallery location on nearby 1604 19^th street.

As soon as we walked in, I was amazed at the ambiance of the new Metro Galleries. Don Martin greeted Gaylen, the cameraman and I, and right away we talked about the modern art of Mike Barker and Veronika Constantine. Their works adorned both walls in a lengthy room that is soon to host events in its gallery, wine and coffee bar. It’s a perfect venue for upscale events. As Gaylen Young put it, “Bakersfield is getting highbrow.”

“We had a lot of floods at the old gallery,” said Don Martin. “We also wanted to expand but couldn’t. So we moved to this new location.”

Is downtown Bakersfield changing before our eyes?

There are outlets around town for local art and even other art galleries at the colleges, but not quite the highbrow feel of Metro Galleries. Closest might be the Bakersfield Museum of Modern Art. Does that mean the gallery is pretentious and pushy? Not at all. The gallery is roomy, eye-appealing, and Don Martin is a gracious host. There’s artsy furniture, exquisite art, and a feeling that this is where gallery-goers will want to go after dressing up for a nice dinner.

If you want to intellectualize and socially network in a way that takes you outside of Bakersfield, go to Metro Galleries. You won't even have to leave town.

The Metro Galleries are also going to offer lofts. Bring the people to live downtown...

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By bringing such art to Bakersfield—similar to how The Noveltown Review brings many new fiction/non-fiction writers to town via a literary arts journal—Bakersfield culture gets an added cultural uplift.

That isn’t to say local art doesn’t have its place in other local venues. Just as the Paperback Writer blog is a place to talk about Bakersfield happenings, The Noveltown Review features literary arts on a whole new level for the Central Valley and Bakersfield. Like the Metro Galleries, The Noveltown Review is simply grounded in Bakersfield.

Now watch Gaylen Young interview Don Martin at the Metro Galleries:



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Gaylen Young talks about Noveltown and downtown art...

Meeting Jen Bowles and Christopher Taylor at the 18th Street Art Gallery - By Matildakay

The Art Studio and 18th Street Art Gallery had its first artist reception and art show under the new direction of Jenn Williams. The artist was Jen Bowles and the art show was “Calculated Spontaneity”.

I represented Noveltown and my first thought upon seeing the 18th Street Art Gallery was: Wow, what a great space!


The Art Studio and 18th Street Art Gallery

Jen Bowles large-scale vibrant paintings are mesmerizing…



There was already quite a crowd of people when I arrived at the gallery. They lingered around Jen Bowles paintings contemplating the intensity of the colors and the textures.

“It’s all about texture and color for me,” Jen Bowles explained. She’s a full time artist in Bakersfield.


Jen Bowles talking about her art

Bowles classified her art as non-representational rather than abstract. I asked her about her chosen medium. “It’s acrylic on board.” She explained, reluctant to reveal the techniques she’d developed in achieving the texture in her paintings.

(Read the full blog)

(Read Jenn Williams interview with Noveltown about the 18th Street Gallery and Art Studio)