Concord Art Association enjoying sixth decade with unwavering spirit
CONCORD, CA (Mar. 4, 2025) — The Concord Art Association (CAA), the oldest art association in Contra Costa County, is embarking on its 61st year as a formal nonprofit – though its existence extends a bit longer.
And, for all intents and purposes, the “C” in its name could just as well as stand for “community.”
Volunteers have been running it for 65 years, starting as an informal group of folks who had a shared enjoyment of art and creating it. Today, CAA’s 120 members are emerging and established artists who use a wide array of arts disciplines to participate in exhibits. There are two in-person galleries along with an online gallery, public art projects, workshops, meet-ups and community events throughout the year.
CAA currently has a pair of shows on view for the public. “Hooked on a Feeling” is on display in an intimate space at the Visit Concord office, 2151 Salvio St., near Todos Santos Plaza, while “What in the World” is at Centre Concord, 5298 Clayton Road.
Member work will be also featured in the “Colors of Spring” exhibit in conjunction with the Concord Historical Society’s upcoming tea event.
According to board secretary Renaye Johnson, CAA’s involvement in the community includes fundraising for a teachers’ grant program and a scholarship program.
Searching for new leader
While the passion of its members has been the driving force through the decades, the organization is at a crossroads as a vacancy remains in its leadership. Still, the organization perseveres through the active involvement of its membership and board to further the group’s mission to cultivate and enrich the creative lives of local artists and Concord area residents through exhibits, education, public art and community giving.
CAA started out 2025 with Laurence Orme as vice president, Thea Jue as treasurer and Johnson in the secretary role. “We have an additional six board members who have taken on a lot of additional duties in order to continue our CAA mission,” Johnson said.
Outgoing president Catherine Hensiek, who has served at the helm since 2017, said the group is looking for a well-versed leader with a range of abilities.
“The CAA needs a president with experience leading any type of group, good written and oral communication skills and hopefully some background managing projects in any field,” she said.
The group also is hoping for more volunteers with information technology and social media skills. “There are not enough backups for those currently managing the website, social media and member emails,” Hensiek added. “Communication is a vital part of any volunteer organization, so it is important for more members to donate their time in this area.”
Strong ties with the city
Hensiek cited the “very effective working relationship” forged between CAA and the city of Concord, including development and implementation of Gallery CAA at Centre Concord.
“Both the City Council and city staff have been supportive of CAA’s efforts to expand art awareness within our city,” said Hensiek. “We find that many city employees are art lovers and proud to have more public art in Concord.”
Another notable CAA endeavor is the Utility Box Art Project launched in the summer of 2018.
“The collaboration was congenial and efficient from the beginning. CAA received wholehearted support from at that time director of Public Works and now assistant city manager Justin Ezell,” said Hensiek. “City manager Valerie Barone was a strong advocate for the project. Many other city employees were key to the successful implementation of the project throughout the years.”
A further reflection of CAA’s support of the community came in the latter half of 2024, when the organization answered the call from the Contra Costa Crisis Center. The center, which offers suicide prevention, grief counseling and other mental health services to all county residents, was seeking artwork to hang in the grief group meeting room and conference room.
CAA delivered, and Crisis Center officials believe the art created an uplifting environment for everyone who spends time at the center. They’ve even asked the arts group to install another show.
For more information about CAA, visit concordartassociation.org.
David Scholz
David Scholz is back in journalism as a freelance writer and photographer after nearly two decades in education. Prior to moving into teaching in 2000, he worked as a full-time journalist since 1988 for rural community and small daily newspapers in Central Ohio and Northern Nevada, and later in California with The Business Journal in Fresno and dailies in the Bay Area, including The Oakland Tribune and The San Francisco Chronicle. More recently Scholz also worked in an editing, writing, and page layout role with the Rossmoor News.