California College of the Arts Honors Arthur Gensler

California College of the Arts Nave interior. Photography by Alison Yin.

To benefit

California College of the Arts (CCA)

‘s scholarship program, the school will present

Blueprints, Blue Jeans and Bluegrass, a Gala

to honor distinguished architect and CCA trustee, Arthur Gensler. The benefit will be held on CCA’s San Francisco campus on Wednesday, March 26, 2014 and feature a cocktail hour, a performance by San Francisco-based bluegrass performers, the Brigham Brothers, and dinner catered by McCalls.

Honoree Arthur Gensler is the founder of global design firm

Gensler

, which originated in San Francisco in 1965 and has since expanded to 46 locations in the Americas, Asia, Europe, and the Middle East. Gensler has received numerous awards for his work in the field of interior design, including Architectural Firm of the Year, IIDA’s Star Award, Ernst & Young LLP’s Lifetime Achievement Award and the Cornell Entrepreneur of the Year Award. He is a charter member of

Interior Design

’s Hall of Fame and a multiple winner of BusinessWeek/Architectural Record Award.

“CCA has a rich history and a tremendous future, and I have long been impressed by the caliber of students who come from around the world to study architecture, art, design, and writing here,” says Gensler. “That is why my wife, Drue, and I began donating to CCA student scholarships back in 1994. We want to invest in the education of extraordinary young people who will become the next generation of creative leaders.”

For 20 years, Gensler has given generously to CCA’s student scholarship program, which devotes 27 percent of its annual budget to providing student scholarships. Over the years, CCA has provided two out of every three enrolling students with need-based aid, believing every student should have the opportunity for an excellent art and design education.

Arthur Gensler. Photography by Spencer Brown.