Mr. Ken scored another first in his dive into the art world. As a new member of the Lee County Alliance for the Arts, Mr. Ken was excited to participate in the Dog Days of Summer Member Exhibit.
Yesterday's opening reception swirled with summer/dog themed art to include: photography, sculpture, quilting, mixed media art, and great conversations, wine and snacks.
Ken and I enjoyed meeting several of the other artists. Lisa is a talented artist who uses painting and other mediums to make her works literally jump out from the canvas! She is as energetic and charming as her painting! We enjoyed meeting her husband, Stephen, as well. Lots of smiles!
We were joined by Bob and Odette, Ken's brother and sister in law. The four of us picked out our favorite pieces, besides Ken's sculpture of course. Odette and I both chose Lisa's bright sunset sailboat painting, with the sailboat jumping from the canvas, as our favorite. Bob chose a dusky evening boat bow moving through Florida reeds that was not for sale. Ken found a black and white enhanced vintage photo that reminded him of his childhood home in Chicago with a stone garden wall fronted by a dog watching over a toddler in shorts with suspenders.
What a fantastic time to see, after all of Mr. K's hard work and dedication to his new talent, the beginnings of the honor he deserves! Mr. Ken let his work stand for itself to be seen. At other times, he was showered with questions, photo ops, and compliments as he was recognized as the sculptor, with his tell-tale Megalodon shark tooth necklace and shark tooth fossil studded cowboy hat! I was happy to see him enjoy this balance.
Everyone marveled meeting my favorite version of Ken's Mega Mouth series to date: 'Jersey'! I nicknamed this shark 'Jersey' because he is 'Jersey tough'! There were lots of ooo's and ahh's in seeing this tough looking shark tooth fossil sculpture~
We finished the reception with a walk around downtown Fort Myers. The first Friday of the month sports an Art Walk downtown with streets blocked off to showcase local musicians and artists. The galleries were open, with streaming customers, karaoke, live music, open shops, and pouring wine from within the galleries.
Mr. Ken and I were taken in as the blond petite directer of 'Arts For Act Gallery' (owned and operated for abuse counseling and treatment services) entertained the crowds with her sultry voice singing vintage blues. Beautiful!
She was the backdrop to an artist I stood next while he painted by streetlight cosmic outer space scenes, one with a brilliantly colorful rain forest frog comically resting on a planet of his own size! Outstanding! Mr. Ken has been invited to display in the Arts for Act gallery soon.
Being a 'teetotaller' (annoyingly due to medication) I indulged my olfactory senses, to lead our steps to the door of a New Age Mystic stone and incense shop, 'So Mote It Be'. We were delighted to meet Patty and learn about these little charcoal biscuits that can be lit and topped with pantry herbs and spices to infuse the air. Patty was burning allspice and dried lavender. Amazing!
What a wonderful evening to satisfy all the artistic senses~
We look forward to Ken's show this October with the Alliance, 'Fall for the Arts', where he will be able to display his collection and offer historical background into his medium, fossils, by an educational presentation. Mr. K is also scheduled to participate in the Cape Coral Festival of the Arts, Cape Coral, FL.
Cheers to Ken and wishes that your weekend is just as delightful as our began!
Lee County Alliance for the Arts:
http://www.artinlee.org/
Lisa Freidus, Artist: Acrylic, Mixed Media, Monotype, Watercolor
www.lisafreidus.com
Arts for Act Gallery, Fort Myers,FL
http://www.artsforactgallery.com/
Patty of 'So Mote It Be'
2267 First St #15, Fort Myers, FL 33901, In the Historic Arcade
somoteitbedowntown@yahoo.com
Cape Coral Festival of the Arts
http://capecoralfestival.com/
had to add our own Isabelle pup for her own Dog Day's of Summer contribution~
:)
"By the Sea" - Sweeney Todd : The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (2007) - Helena Bonham Carter
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=10tee6Eff34