NEW FAUX FLOWERS FOR RENT

Titus and Renee Pea served in the United States Air Force; Titus served for 26 years, and Renee served for 22 years. In 2021, they were asked by a friend to make all of the arrangements for her fairytale destination wedding at the Twickenham Estate in Jeferson, North Carolina. “When the guests and the bridal party walked into the reception hall, the looks on their faces were priceless,” Renee said. “As a team, my husband and I found our calling in floral design. We can design your dream flowers for any special occasion.”

The couple’s flowers are truly unique, as they are not real, they are fake — or faux. “These aren’t your grandmother’s flowers,” Renee said. “They have a natural look and touch and are eco-friendly.” as they are not real, they are fake — or

— and you can rent them for your next event.

By Libby Hopkins

er,” Renee said. “We had been looking at franchising, and we found FauxReal Flowers. I met with the franchise owners for two days and decided this was a perfect fit for us.”

The Peas are the owners of FauxReal Flowers in Brandon. “Our flowers will never wilt and are afordable for any budget,” Renee said. “We will customize, deliver, set up and pick up your arrangements for your events.”

Renee got into flower arranging as a way of relieving anxiety. “My husband is very active in the Brandon community, and we wanted something to do togeth-

The FauxReal Flowers model is a low-maintenance and fun business to be in, while ofering franchisees a low investment cost for a great turnaround. The profits are high and the costs are low, which makes investing in FauxReal Flowers worth it. “FauxReal Flowers are sustainable, rent-and-return flowers, so brides or event organizers get a luxury dream look at a fraction of the price,” Renee said. “Our goal is to give our clients everything they want and more without breaking the bank. This includes beautiful bouquets, arbors, walls, stands, accents and more at competitive prices.”

If you would like to learn more about FauxReal Flowers or hire FauxReal Flowers for your next event, you can visit the Peas website at https://brandon.fauxrealflowers.com or call them at 813-5956374. You can also stop by their showroom, located at 1363 Oakfield Dr. in Brandon.

Local artists are invited to submit a proposal to be considered for Skyway 2024 exhibition, the Tampa Bay area’s celebration of contemporary art. This is an open call to artists and art collectives residing in Hillsborough, Manatee, Pasco, Pinellas and Sarasota counties to submit application materials for the exhibition.

There are five partnering institutions collaborating in this exhibition. These include the Museum of Fine Arts, St. Petersburg; The John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art; the Tampa Museum of Art; the Sarasota Art Museum of Ringling College of Art and Design; and the USF Contemporary Art Museum. The five art institutions will co-publish a fully illustrated catalogue to accompany the exhibition featuring the work of each exhibiting artist.

The deadline to enter is Monday, August 14. Artists working in diverse media and disciplines, including socially engaged art and participatory projects, are encouraged to submit original artworks and project proposals. Submissions can include, but are not limited to, works on paper, paintings, sculptures, photography, videos, performances, sound, research-based art and site-specific installations. Submissions can include examples of works and past projects that provide an overview of the artist’s practice. Only original works of art completed after De-

By Kathy L. Collins

cember 2020 will be considered for the exhibition in 2024.

Artworks and projects in the exhibition will be selected by an expanded curatorial team from the five participating art institutions, including Christopher Jones, Stanton B. and Nancy W. Kaplan curator of photography and media artst, and Ola Wlusek, Keith D. and Linda L. Monda curator of modern and contemporary art, from The John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art; Katherine Pill, senior curator of contemporary art, from the Museum of Fine Arts, St. Petersburg; Rangsook Yoon, senior curator from the Sarasota Art Museum; Joanna Robotham, curator of modern and contemporary art from the Tampa Museum of Art; and Christian Viveros-Fauné, curator-at-large from the USF Contemporary Art Museum.

Curator, writer and scholar Evan Garza is the guest juror for Skyway 2024. Currently a curatorial fellow at the Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art, Garza was a recent Fulbright scholar at the Irish Museum of Modern Art in Dublin, Ireland and served as co-curator and artistic director of the 2021 Texas Biennial. Garza co-founded Fire Island Artist Residency (FIAR), a New York nonprofit and the first residency program in the world exclusively for LGBTQ+ artists. Additional information and submission guidelines can be found at www.skywaytampabay.com.