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ARTVENTURE PENSACOLA
A Showcase of Public Art
by Kelly Oden
“Cities gain value through public art—cultural, social, and economic value. Public art is a distinguishing part of our public history and our evolving culture. It reflects and reveals our society, adds meaning to our cities and uniqueness to our communities. Public art humanizes the built environment and invigorates public spaces. It provides an intersection between past, present and future, between disciplines, and between ideas.” – Americans For The Arts Public Art Network Council
Last November, the City of Pensacola Parks and Recreation Department launched a guide to outdoor art in the Pensacola area. Originally named the POP! Story Map project, the name has recently changed to ArtVenture Pensacola.
The idea originated when Holly Benson, Pensacola resident and former member of the Florida House of Representatives, decided to donate a sculpture to the city. While discussing the logistics with Mayor Grover Robinson, she learned that there was no official listing or directory of public art in Pensacola and she set out to change that. Benson gathered a team of professionals that included leadership from Artel Gallery, The Pensacola Museum of Art, First City Art Center, NAS Pensacola, Veterans Memorial Park, University of West Florida, Pensacola State College and the City of Pensacola. The team went to work identifying public art sculptures first. “This was a great team effort by arts, history and business leaders from our community in partnership with the city,” Benson said. “We have so many people who are passionate about our city and its treasures, and this is a fun way to share this information.”
The newly named site can be accessed at artventurepensacola.com. Visitors can also scan a QR code sticker at various public art displays that will lead them to the particular web page for that work of art. The site is designed as a story map, which users can see on their computers or mobile devices. Divided by location, each section offers maps to each of the sculptures and background information on each of the pieces, including the artist, the donor and the significance of the piece.
Benson sees public art as both an extension of our community and a reflection of it. “Public art enhances the quality of life of any city,” she said. “But in Pensacola, we are a city that has always celebrated the arts and our history. Public art is an important component of that. It also serves as a nice complement to those other great resources we already have including the museum, the opera and the symphony.”
With the sculpture phase of the project complete, the team is now working on cataloging the abundance of murals in pensacola. We have really talented mural painters all around this town,” Benson said. “There's just a lot of creativity and when people are investing in that, it not only improves quality of their building, but their overall neighborhood as well.”
While the team is doing their best to find every piece of public art, they want to hear from the public if there is one they’ve missed. If you know of a public sculpture you think should be included, you can email Kim Carmody at kcarmody@ cityofpensacola.com. To see all of the sculptures, their locations and history, visit artventurepensacola.com.
