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Elevate Art Menlo Park is making our downtown more enjoyable.
I am one of four Menlo Park residents currently building a unique public art walk in Downtown Menlo Park. It features large contemporary art from Bay Area artists that is installed on the exteriors of local businesses. The other founders are Christine Duval, Debbie Hall, and Jeff Kleck. Our non-profit, Elevate Art Menlo Park, partners with retailers, restaurants, and building owners; commissions artworks; and fully manages all aspects of every art installation. We share the desire to make our downtown more appealing and believe high-quality art can enrich our community and lift everyone’s spirits.
Elevate Art Menlo Park has greater flexibility, lower costs and much shorter planning and installation schedules than typical public art projects because we do NOT rely on public funding, public property and local government decision-making. We are an independent, action-oriented, all-volunteer team.
In July, we installed Le Mont Rouge (See Figure 1) – the fifth art display in our current collection – on the Doyle Street side of the Left Bank restaurant and intend to both add at least three more art sites and rotate the art displays. Our success depends on the strength of community support, not only from Menlo Park businesses and building owners, but also from residents of both Menlo Park and Atherton, as we need additional sites and private donations.
Please contact us to learn how you can help.
Le Mont Rouge + Left Bank
Le Mont Rouge is a Provençal landscape by Palo-Alto-based artist, Flo de Bretagne. Its composition, intense colors and shallow perspective produce an image that boldly contrasts with traditional artist treatments of pastoral settings. It was the perfect choice for the Left Bank, a popular French restaurant, and its visual impact is enhanced by the deep ocean blue color of the building.
The Left Bank has become a wonderful partner for Elevate Art Menlo Park. It immediately responded positively to our invitation to join the Downtown Menlo Park Art Walk and then supported us at every point in the planning and installation of Le Mont Rouge. We could not be happier with our relationship.
“I liked the outdoor art when walking around Menlo Park but was unaware of the Downtown Menlo Park Art Walk program. So, when the Left Bank received an invitation to participate, I jumped at the opportunity,” said general manager, Darvin Aragon. “The Left Bank has been in Menlo Park for a long time, and I wanted the restaurant and our building to feel even more of a part of the community than it already was. The Elevate Art team was attentive and professional every step of the way and made me feel like we were old friends reuniting for a new experience.”
The Left Bank interviewed the artist Flo De Bretagne and the transcript is on its website. More information about Flo and her work is available on her website.
Current Art Collection
Here are the other large format artworks in the existing art walk. Learn about the artists and their works by using the embedded links below.
Self-Guided Art Walk Tour Map
Help Us Build An Even Better Art Walk
- Local retailers and building owners. We need space to install art on your building. The art is mounted on a removable wooden platform. You will have final approval on art that is selected.
- Menlo Park and Atherton residents. We need your financial support to pay artists and install art. Elevate Art Menlo Park is sponsored by Intersection for the Arts, a San Francisco-based 501(c)(3) organization so donations can be tax-deductible.
Please contact us to help.
Make our dull downtown an appealing place to visit.
Menlo Park has been my family’s home for more than thirty-five years, and we feel extremely fortunate to have lived here. However, the poor economic condition and appearance of our downtown remains a huge shortcoming. The evidence is undeniable. Store closings exceed openings. Numerous long-term vacancies mar Santa Cruz Avenue. Streets and parking lots are poorly maintained, and sidewalks and crosswalks are stained and dirty. Like many U.S. cities, our downtown has faced severe economic pressures. But unlike neighboring Peninsula cities, e., g., Palo Alto, San Carlos, Redwood City, Mountain View, and Burlingame, Menlo Park has expended little effort to make our downtown more successful, interesting and attractive – a very attainable objective. In a future post, I will focus on why I believe our city government largely ignores the poor condition and competitiveness of downtown and describe ways concerned residents and businesses could potentially alter the Menlo Park City Councils’ characteristic behavior of conducting expensive market studies but rarely investing in promising civic improvements.
In the meantime, I recommend residents
- Support – and elect – council members who believe improving downtown should be an important strategic priority for our city.
- Like Elevate Art Menlo Park, residents and businesses can make improvements to downtown that do not rely on city investments. For example, Bistro Vida has provided the tables and umbrellas for the 600 block public plaza. Residents, businesses and organizations can stage events and activities at this location.
- Support new businesses, e.g., Levant Desserts, as they assume substantial risks when they invest in downtown.
- Encourage the City Council to make it easier for new businesses to open. Many owners report that Menlo Park is significantly more difficult to work with than other cities. Menlo Park has not had a full-time economic development director for more than two years so business lack an individual who can help them solve problems working with the city.
The Downtown Menlo Park Art Walk
Lifts everyone’s spirits and enriches our entire community !
