Clement Renzi's relief sculpture "A Day in the Park" has been donated to the City of Fresno. Photo via yourcentralvalley.com.

A rare piece of local art is being donated to the City of Fresno.

On Tuesday morning, Councilmember Nelson Esparza and City Attorney Andrew Janz hosted a joint press conference in front of the Fresno County Library downtown to announce the donation of the late sculptor Clement Renzi’s work, “A Day in the Park” to the city.

“A Day in the Park” is a bas-relief or “low relief” sculpture, a technique where the design is slightly raised from a clay surface. The mural-like sculpture consists of 288 tiles that were previously featured on the side of the Fagbule Glass House Event Center on Shields Avenue just west of Highway 41.

The work is being donated by Dr. Stephen Fagbule, a Fresno pastor and doctor who bought the building in 2011.

Clement Renzi was an American sculptor from Farmersville whose work is enjoyed around the world. Much of his public work can be found in the Fresno area. Renzi died in Fresno in 2009 at the age of 84.

In January, a fired destroyed the vacant Fagbule building, where the sculpture was first installed in 1982 when the building opened as a savings and loan, reported GV Wire.

The work was removed before the demolition of the building and is currently being stored in a city warehouse.

Janz said he and Ezparza have been working for more than four months to figure out what do with the artwork.

“The City’s role in all this was not immediately evident,” Esparza said. “We were talking about a privately-owned sculpture sitting on a privately-owned parcel, albeit with a great amount of community interest and value placed on the sculpture.”

Both Janz and Esparza said the donation would ensure that future generations would be able to enjoy the public artwork.

Janz said the process involved the city’s legal team working with city staff, the demolition contractor, the courts, art conservationists and the on-site foreman.

“The Renzi family expressed a strong desire to make sure this piece is displayed in a public place where people have access to, and in a safe location,” Janz said.

A couple locations have been floated to display the artwork, including the Fresno Chaffee Zoo and Fresno Yosemite International Airport.

Janz said there is no set timeline for the installation of the piece in its future home.

Salvador Esqueda, a local sculptor who partnered with Renzi to create “A Day in the Park,” advised Janz’s team on taking down and repairing the sculpture.

Esqueda said Renzi made the piece to be enjoyed by people in a public location. He added that bas relief sculpture is a technique rarely passed down these days, making it an increasingly rare style.

“It’s an art form that takes years to master. A lot of patience is involved in producing it. It’s a lot of physical work, and if someone came up to me to make a piece as large, I would question whether I’d do it,” Esqueda said.

Esparza said the piece still needs to be appraised. Given the work’s rarity, the amount could be significant.

He said Measure P tax money would probably not be able to be used for the project at this point.

Ezparza said the only outstanding price tag was for taking the sculpture down and renovating it. As part of the deal with Fagbule, the City has agreed to waive a fee of about $40,000 for those services.

“That amount is well worth preserving the piece in the long run,” Janz said.