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FRESNO - CLOVIS - BAKERSFIELD 04.19-20.06 Comment: I'm off to LA to check out the famed Brewery Art Walk plus maybe a couple of gallery openings. No hurry, though. Maybe I'll mosey on down Route 99 South through the heart of the Central Valley and assess the situation. I don't get to the valley much, have no idea what's there in terms of art, but I sorta know the bookstores and antique malls. The fun part for inveterate junkers like me is that you never know what you're gonna smoke out where. There's always something. (My two best finds-- the Abbott B. Thayer Memorial Exhibition catalogue from the Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1922, inscribed by Thayer's son, Gerald H. Thayer, and a kickass streamlined razor-cut Patrick Nagel-esque hair design manual from the mid-eightes, published in Germany, no text, just black and white portrait photos, mostly women, a few dudes.) But enough about my good fortune. Let's poke around and see what we can snipe. Fresno... The Tower Theater, Olive Avenue, Fresno. Fulton's Folly Antique Mall, right across from the Tower Theater. Best of Fulton's Folly Mall. Also at Fulton's Folly, a faux marble upside down "S"- $80. Clovis... Old Town Clovis antique stores, just outside Fresno. Typical Clovis antique mall booth. Sassano's Mens Wear in Clovis looks as old as the antique stores. Woah! They still have brand new clothes dating back to mid-1960's! Bakersfield... Comin' into Bakersfield. First stop, Five & Dime Antique Mall, 1400 19th St. (right). Typical Five & Dime booth. Well, what have we here? And it's still in the box! $8. Come to think of it, I could use a good shag raking. This is curious-- upstairs in the back-- unopened atom bomb emergency rations. More vintage nuclear attack provisions at Five & Dime. Taxidermized bear, Budweiser beer, snowshoes, and a security cam. Gangsta wear (not my size-- had to let it go). Best for last... Great American Antiques, 625 19th St., Bakersfield. Front desk area. Looking up (plane about 12 feet long, propeller to tail). Mini folk bungalow architecture circa 1920's (like it). Great American Antiques upper partial. *** |
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