Art News

Waffle or sugar cone?

National Ice Cream Day is Sundae, July 17. To celebrate, the St. Pete Pier will be hosting the inaugural Tampa Bay Ice Cream Festival. Indulging your sweet tooth from 11am-8pm is a no-brain(freeze)r.

Function junction

Artists, showcase all your different talents at “For the Love of Function,” an exhibit coming to Atelier de SoSi in August when the gallery space will be transformed to represent a living space. We’re looking for textiles, glassware, furniture, wall art, table settings, lighting, etc. Applications: open through July 20 Opening Reception: August 10, 6-9pm For more information and to apply click www.bit.ly/3MxA4If, email info@atelierdesosi.com, or call 727-370-4192.

To get an idea of Atelier’s style, check out “LIT,” an exhibition that immerses the viewer in a glowing ambiance and colorful experience with works in neon, plasma, glow paints, lighting, and other illuminating materials. Atelier de SoSi, 2380 6th Ave. S in St. Pete. Gallery hours Tues., Weds., Thurs. 1-5pm.

Chris Lang “Walking toward/ away from you” Afro-Cuban funk phenom Cimafunk makes his highly anticipated return to Tampa for a one-night-only performance in Ybor City at the Cuban Club on October 14. The Tampa appearance will be the last show of his El Alimento Tour of the United States. Tickets ($25 general admission, $100 VIP) are available at www.bandsintown.com.

Calling all nature enthusiasts!

Join us on a safari through the Museum of Fine Arts galleries as we discover how animals, plants, weather, water, and sky have inspired artists since the dawn of time. Learn how artists can not only share the beauty of nature but also help protect it. This camp includes a Friday field trip to the St. Pete Pier and the Tampa Bay Watch Discovery Center. MFA’s Art & Nature Camp, July 18-July 22, 9am-4pm. Camp is designed for rising 1st to 5th graders. Cost: MFA members: $190. Not-yet-members: $250. Scholarships are available. For more information and to register: www.bit.ly/3LAl9vm.

The Museum of Fine Arts in St. Petersburg presents the first solo museum exhibition of multidisciplinary artist Gio Swaby (b. 1991, Nassau, Bahamas), whose work explores the intersections of Blackness and womanhood. Employing the portrait genre and a range of textile-based techniques, Swaby’s work is anchored in a desire to present and celebrate the complex personalities of the sitters. On display through Oct. 9. Gio Swaby “My Hands are Clean 4” 2017

The Museum of Fine Arts in St. Petersburg is proud to be a Blue Star Museum and to show our appreciation to military families. From Armed Forces Day (May 21) to Labor Day (Sept. 5), the MFA offers free admission to active-duty military personnel, including National Guard and Reserve, and their families. Spouses and families are eligible for Blue Star Museums even if the active-duty member is deployed/not present.

The Tampa Museum of Art (another Blue Star Museum; see www.arts.gov/initiatives/ blue-star-museums for a complete list) has announced a $25 million gift from Dick Corbett in support of its Centennial Capital Campaign for Renovation and Expansion. The single largest private gift ever made to a Florida-based public art museum and art education center will support the museum’s capital campaign, which began in 2020. American Landmark Apartments has selected multimedia artist Brian B.V. Cooper as its 2022 Artist in Residence in Tampa. The program, now entering its third year, provides no-cost housing and studio space for up to one year for select visual artists. In return, grant recipients are asked to implement on-site community art events and educational programs, including classes for adults and children. Cooper will literally hang out at Amira at Westly in Tampa’s Town N Country neighborhood. He will offer a variety of classes and workshops on interactive painting and drawing, video production, internet editing and digital painting for residents. For more information on the program visit www.artistsalapts.com.

Brian B.V Cooper

Nixon’s the One!

On Oct. 28, 1970, President Richard Nixon spoke to a crowd of 7,000 people in the Bayfront Center Arena (now the site of the Dali Museum) to boost the campaigns of Florida Gov. Claude Kirk and Rep. William C. Cramer. This marked the first time St. Petersburg was visited by a sitting president.

Bayfront Center

Unleash the sheer joy of a full season of The Florida Orchestra with series tickets. It’s featuring Carmina Burana; Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 4; Beethoven’s Symphony No. 6, “Pastoral;” Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 3; and many more under the leadership of Music Director Michael Francis. Season ticket buyers enjoy tremendous benefits including: • Save $5 per ticket per concert • Free exchanges • Free vouchers • Best seats For a complete listing of the 2022/23 season click to www.floridaorchestra.org/ buy-tickets/subscribe.

Gulfport’s own Brenda McMahon will teach her fifth international ceramic workshop in Tuscany Sept. 11-24. The 12-day ceramic intensive workshop is designed for experienced and beginner clay enthusiasts to study McMahon’s unique style in tile making and glazing. More information can be found at www.brenda mcmahon.com/Workshops.php. Brenda McMahon Gallery is located at 2901 Beach Blvd. S in downtown Gulfport.

Ukrainian soldiers discovered a trove of ancient Greek urns in Odessa while preparing military fortifications against the Russian invasion. The Ukrainian 126th Territorial Defense was digging trenches in the Black Sea port city when members unearthed a cache of 2,500-year-old amphorae, ancient ceramic vessels with narrow necks that were used for storing and transporting liquids and dry goods. Despite the ongoing warfare, the soldiers were able to transport the artifacts to the Odessa Archaeological Museum.

Soldiers discovered ancient amphorae in Odesa, Ukraine. Photo courtesy of the 126th Territorial Defense.

Creative Pinellas has chosen the Pinellas Recovers Arts &

Cultural Organization Grant

recipients. Twenty organizations received grants ranging from $2,500 to $50,000 after careful review by a panel of leaders of arts and granting organizations. The purpose of the grants, funded through a $500,000 grant Creative Pinellas received from the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), is to assist arts and cultural organizations in their recovery from the COVID-19 crisis. Creative Pinellas allocated $350,000 to arts organizations and $150,000 to individual artists and administration. For a full list of recipients see www.bit.ly/3MB4IAe. The LGBTQ Resource Center of the Gulfport Library will hold its 5th Annual ArtOut exhibit, “Queering the Pandemic,” June 1-30. This international juried exhibit will be held both in person at the Gulfport Public Library and virtually at www.artout.lgbtqgulfport.org. This exhibition features artwork created by LGBTQ+ artists and Allies inspired by life experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic. The primary goal of the exhibit is to lift up LGBTQ+ experiences and responses generated by the COVID-19 pandemic: resilience, creativity, suffering, persistence, and more. WHEN: June 1-30 WHERE: Gulfport Public Library, 5501 28th Ave. S, Gulfport

Happy hour with the historian

The St. Petersburg Museum of History invites you to learn more about our fair city during these Thursday evening talks: June 9: Bill DeYoung, Vintage St. Pete II: Legends, Locations, Lifestyles July 14: Joshua Ginsberg: Secrets of Tampa Bay August 11: Robert Jacob: Pirates of the Florida Coast September 8: Dr. Rachel Sanderson: La Florida: The Interactive Digital Archive of the Americas Doors open at 6pm. Program starts at 6:30pm. Members: free, not-yet-members: $10. Cash bar provided by Hops & Props. St. Petersburg Museum of History 335 2nd Ave. NE

Historic Asolo Theater

The greatest show in Sarasota!

Enjoy world-class entertainment during the 2022 Summer Circus Spectacular at the Historic Asolo Theater on the grounds of The Ringling. The spectacular lineup includes: Master of Ceremonies Heidi Herriott; comedian Chris Allison; Olga Coronas and Holly Legare, Duo Lyra; Dust In the Wind Hand Balance Adagio; Abrehem Mola, Rolla Bolla; hand balance contortionist Ricardo Sosa; and much more. When: June 10 - August 13 Showtimes: 11am and 2pm Tuesdays through Fridays, and 2 and 5pm on Saturdays Tickets: $18/adults, $12/children 12 and under. Patrons can also enjoy access to the Circus Museum on the day they attend a show for an additional $5. For more information go to www.ringling.org or call 941-360-7399.