The Albert Lea Art Center is located in Albert Lea

Albert Lea, Minnesota

Albert Lea is a city in and the county seat of Freeborn County in the southeastern part of the U.S. state of Minnesota. The population was 18,016 at the 2010 census....

, Minnesota

Minnesota

Minnesota is a U.S. state located in the Midwestern United States. The twelfth largest state of the U.S., it is the twenty-first most populous, with 5.3 million residents. Minnesota was carved out of the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory and admitted to the Union as the thirty-second state...

. The Albert Lea Art Center, Bessessen Historic Opera House Building, was built in 1916, by Van Kirk and Cederburg, St. Paul architects. It was built to showcase the talents of internationally acclaimed opera prima donna Beatrice Bessessen. It has since been adapted for usage as a motion picture theatre, a mini-mall, and most recently as the Albert Lea Art Center. The façade is French Renaissance

French Renaissance

French Renaissance is a recent term used to describe a cultural and artistic movement in France from the late 15th century to the early 17th century. It is associated with the pan-European Renaissance that many cultural historians believe originated in northern Italy in the fourteenth century...

. The upper interiors possess both Arts and crafts

Arts and crafts

Arts and crafts comprise a whole host of activities and hobbies that are related to making things with one's hands and skill. These can be sub-divided into handicrafts or "traditional crafts" and "the rest"...

 style and Art Nouveau

Art Nouveau

Art Nouveau is an international philosophy and style of art, architecture and applied art—especially the decorative arts—that were most popular during 1890–1910. The name "Art Nouveau" is French for "new art"...

 elements. Historical aspects of the first level have been compromised. It is currently in need of major restoration

Art conservation and restoration

Conservation-restoration, also referred to as conservation, is a profession devoted to the preservation of cultural heritage for the future. Conservation activities include examination, documentation, treatment, and preventive care...

. The "Restore the Building Foundation" has been created for that purpose.