On Friday, WKCTC received a $400,000 donation from Paducah's Carson-Myre Charitable Foundation to finish Phase 3 of the Paducah School of Art and Design campus project. Paul Aho, Dean of PSAD, speaks with Kate Lochte about the renovations to the Kitchens Building and the multitude of programs that will be housed in the new building upon completion, including a recent "surprise" addition.
Related: WKCTC President on Origins of Paducah Arts Expansion
Paul Aho, Dean of the Paducah School of Art and Design, says he is grateful to the Carson Myre Foundation and individuals in the community for their support, getting the school into the final phase of campus renovations and expansion.
Ceramics and jewelry studios were completed in January 2013. A 6,700 square-foot sculpture, metals and wood building opens today. Relocating 2D programs from leased spaces downtown to a new home is the next step.
The final phase centers on the Kitchens Building, an historic property located near LowerTown. Eventually, the PSAD campus will face Martin Luther King Jr. Drive, and in order to achieve this, portions of the Kitchens Building will be removed. Gutting and renovating the building, Aho says, will allow for the school to forther develop programs in painting, drawing, photography, graphic design, print making and fibers, an art gallery, and the late-addition of a cafe/bistro for culinary workshops and catering in collaboration with WKCTC. The new building is scheduled to open in January 2016.
"We're hoping that as we add these facilities and we continue to add faculty that we will be more attractive to regional high school students who are looking for those first two-year experiences before going on for transfer experience elsewhere."
Aho says the mission is to continue recruiting in regional high schools, believing this new building will be attractive in bringing artists and students from the region and around country, building credibility in the national marketplace.
