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Photos: Art Deco Architecture In The San Joaquin Valley

KVPR | By Joe Moore
Published May 1, 2014 at 2:34 PM PDT
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Fresno's Memorial Auditorium is a massive Art Deco-inspired downtown landmark
Joe Moore / Valley Public Radio
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Fresno's Memorial Auditorium features Art Deco details mixed with a streamlined classical influence in harmony with many more traditional civic buildings.
Joe Moore / Valley Public Radio
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Bakersfield's Kress building is an Art Deco gem
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Porterville's 1939 city hall was desgined by Fresno architect Fred Swartz, and features a mix of Art Deco details and other modern design influences.
Joe Moore / Valley Public Radio
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Fresno's Art Deco County Hall of Records was recently added to the National Register of Historic Places
Joe Moore / Valley Public Radio
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The Dinuba High School Auditorium is a fine example of Art Deco's 1930's-era cousin, Streamline Moderne
Joe Moore / Valley Public Radio
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Porterville's downtown post office is similar in style to the one in Visalia, and it too features Art Deco-inspired details
Joe Moore / Valley Public Radio
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Ornate Art Deco ornamentation is seen above the windows on Bakersfield's Kress building
Joe Moore / Valley Public Radio
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The historic Kress building in downtown Bakersfield is an excellent example of Art Deco architectural ornamentation
Joe Moore / Valley Public Radio
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Often overlooked by most visitors, the medallions on the front of the Memorial Auditorium actually feature cow skulls
Joe Moore / Valley Public Radio
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Allied Architects used Art Deco oranmentation to help break up the massive concrete flanks of the Memorial Auditorium
Joe Moore / Valley Public Radio
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Bakersfield's Central Fire Station (1939) by architect Charles Biggar wouldn't look out of place in Miami
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The now vacant courthouse annex in Visalia is topped by a central tower decorated with Art Deco trademark design elements.
Joe Moore / Valley Public Radio
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Even the lighting fixtures at Visalia's downtown post office exude Art Deco details
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Visalia's downtown post office is clad in simple red brick, yet it features many outstanding Art Deco details. These terra cotta reliefs deptic a highly stylized cornucopia, reflecting the Valley's agricultural heritage.
Joe Moore / Valley Public Radio
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Fresno's County Hall of Records has some of the most impressive Art Deco sculptural reliefs in the San Joaquin Valley
Joe Moore / Valley Public Radio
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Even commerical buildings in small towns jumped on the Art Deco bandwagon, such as this retail storefront in Exeter
Joe Moore / Valley Public Radio
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Even modest movie houses like this one in Lindsay CA adopted Art Deco inspired design elements.
Joe Moore / Valley Public Radio
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Visalia's downtown post office was built in 1933 and was designed by Fresno architect W.D. Coates.
Joe Moore / Valley Public Radio
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Stainless steel relief panels grace the facade of the Hall of Records
Joe Moore / Valley Public Radio
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The Tower Theatre might be Fresno's most popular "Art Deco" building, but it's actually an example of the related style known as Streamline Moderne, characterized by elegant curves. It was designed by noted architect S. Charles Lee and completed in 1939.
Joe Moore / Valley Public Radio
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The Art Deco aesthetic even extended to the plaques adorning many of the civic buildings of the 1930's, such as this one on Porterville's 1939 city hall building.
Joe Moore / Valley Public Radio
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Fresno's Fire Station No. 3 is a fine yet simple example of Art Deco design
Joe Moore / Valley Public Radio

May is National Historic Preservation Month, and the City of Fresno is celebrating with a slate of events that honor the city's unique architectural heritage. The events include a walking tour of New Deal-era Fresno, and the many Art Deco landmarks that dot the downtown area. Fresno isn't alone in its collection of excellent architecture. Bakersfield, Visalia and even smaller towns like Lindsay, Porterville and Exeter also boast remarkable Art Deco landmarks. 

The term Art Deco has its roots in an influential French design exhibition from 1925. Art Deco architecture combined the ideas of modernism with stylized ornamentation using bold geometric forms, new materials like stainless steel, bright colors, and stylized sculptural reliefs. 

All photos copyright Joe Moore / Valley Public Radio
Tags
Community FresnoBakersfieldVisaliaexeterhistoryLindsayportervillearchitectureart decodesign
Joe Moore
Joe Moore is the President and General Manager of KVPR / Valley Public Radio. He has led the station through major programming changes, the launch of KVPR Classical and the COVID-19 pandemic. Under his leadership the station was named California Non-Profit of the Year by Senator Melissa Hurtado (2019), and won a National Edward R. Murrow Award for investigative reporting (2022).
See stories by Joe Moore
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