Gulfport is what Florida used to be and could have been, had it not been buried under condominiums. Through the vision and the fight of its citizenry, Gulfport escaped that ubiquitous fate. At the center of this, bordering on the water, is the Casino where the Professional Association of Visual Artists, along with sponsors City of Gulfport, Gulfport Merchants Association and the St. Petersburg Tribune put on the 2 COOL Art Show.
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| Bruce Ferguson, "Egrets Bayou" |
The name of the show is a play on words because this show is air conditioned, and there is the original COOL Art show, also put on by PAVA at the Coliseum. Thirty-seven artists in a variety of media comprised the 2 COOL show. A few highlights....
Bruce Ferguson is a Tampa painter who has been reviewed here before. He paints the flora and fauna at the water's edge. Mangroves, water, birds and more with romantic colors and in a slightly Impressionistic manner.
On the right is an unfinished Ferguson, titled
"Egrets Bayou". I show it because one almost never sees an unfinished work on display.
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| Bruce Ferguson with his work. |
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Liz Williams, who has been reviewed here before, paints on silk. Works with strong, melodic colors simultaneously insightful and witty.
In the painting at left, we see a Cuban Sandwich in what appears to be an ovum-like enclosure. Smaller Cuban sandwiches float like moons and planets around it. Note the DNA strand diagonally across the lower left corner.
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| Liz Williams and her work. |
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Sarah Thee Campagna and her Cybercraft Robots have been reviewed here several times. Her art robots have steadily evolved since the first time I saw one over three years ago.
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| Sarah Thee Campagna, "Copperhead" |
"Copperhead" is a fictional, albeit familiar, artifact, according to its accompanying narrative, a weapon found by a robot from the Redhead Rebellion against the Snake People. It is an artifact of freedom. Coincidentally, the artist happens to be a... redhead.
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| Sarah Thee Campagna, "Sirius and Corvus" |
From the artist's narrative: Named after the Dog Star and the constellation of the Crow, these two Star Rangers patrol our stellar neighborhood fighting injustice and rescuing damaged robots. They are new knights, purposeful and true.
These robots are strangely human.
Congratulations to all the artists, PAVA, and the Casino for a memorable show.
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Luis
