Art shows in April include one with an interesting premise: "Is it Art or is it Design?"

The show, organized by the Fresno Design Alliance, will run 5-8 p.m. Thursday at Broadway Studios, Tuolumne and Broadway streets in downtown Fresno. Thursday also is the monthly night for ArtHop downtown and in the Tower District.

(Just a friendly reminder: the second ArtHop is the third Thursday of the month in Clovis and other parts of Fresno. All ArtHop receptions generally take place 5-8 p.m.)

The alliance is a collaboration of professional and student graphic designers who want to develop design awareness in the city.

For Thursday's show, organizers sought work from artists, designers and photographers. Perhaps you can help them answer the questions on their flier: "Is there a point where something crosses over? Is it all art? All design? What differentiates one from the other?"

Here's a sample of other shows you can catch in April:

Bill Bruce has been on a roll lately with exhibits, and his next one is Thursday at the home of radio stations KYNO (AM 1300) and KJWL (FM 99.3), 1415 Fulton St. The renovated space now is part of ArtHop night. Bruce will display new paintings and other selected pieces from his studio.

The Spectrum Art Gallery, 608 E. Olive Ave., presents "ImageMakers: Photographers of the Monterey Peninsula." The Thursday-April 26 show spotlights a group of artists who have continued the rich tradition of fine art photography from the peninsula. A panel discussion and reception will begin at 1 p.m. Saturday at the gallery.

Painter Aimee Brantley will be featured Thursday at the Downtown Community Arts Collective, 754 P St. Her show, 5-8 p.m., is called "Make Believe." Her favored medium is acrylic and oil paint but she also draws and experiments with photography.

Gallery 25, 660 Van Ness Ave., has scheduled exhibits from Lynne Anderson and Kirtley King in April.

Fig Tree Gallery, 644 Van Ness Ave., features Paulina Swietliczko.

The Golda Foundation's Art Space, 1239 Fulton Mall, presents printmaking pieces by Fresno City College art instructor Nicholas Spohrer and his students.

Marina Triantafyllou presents a show at Studio 74, 1274 N. Van Ness Ave. It runs Thursday-April 15.

The Art Stand Gallery features pieces by Sally Delap-John and Suzie Stach at a reception April 16, 5-8 p.m. Delap-John is a watercolorist, while Stach works in pastel, oil and watercolor. The gallery is east of Clovis at Highway 180 and Frankwood Avenue in Minkler.

The Courthouse Gallery in Exeter spotlights three artists in "Paint What Smiles at You," a show inspired by the natural beauty of California landscapes.

The artists are Joy Collier of Porterville and Whittier-based artists Holly Overin and Glen Eisner. This show runs April 4-June 28 at the gallery, 125 S. B St.

"Anna Richards Brewster: American Impressionist" continues at the Fresno Metropolitan Museum, 1555 Van Ness Ave., through June 7.

The Fresno Art Museum, 2233 N. First St. continues with "Robert Ogata: Between Figure and Ground;" "Harvesting Myths: The Art of Kathryn Kain;" and "Aung Aung Taik: The Edifice of Impermanence." All exhibits run through May 3.

"Functional Forms" continues at Clay Mix, 1003 N. Abby St. The show features Ken Standhardt, Mary Law and Paddy McNeely through May 2.