I really didn’t know what to expect, but was pleasantly surprised.  I had called my mother about an hour before and asked if she would like to go.  I also suggested that she could buy dinner for us afterward.  She laughed and obliged.  Thank you Mom.

My mother and I wandered around the exhibit for about 20 minutes before Hughes, a professor of art at The University of Texas at Tyler, spoke briefly about his new works.  The artist has entitled the new body of work Neocryptofunk.  What a cool new word.  All of the new sculptures on exhibit were fabricated from steel during the recent holiday break.  View a few of the detail images from Neocryptofunk on the artists website.

I thoroughly enjoyed the exhibit and recommend making a special visit to Melvin Gallery at Florida Southern College before it closes on February 24.  Gallery hours are Monday-Friday from 9am-4pm when school is in session.

While you are there, stop by the “Child of the Sun” Visitor Center located in the William M. Hollis Exhibition and Seminar Room.  It’s a short walk from Melvin Gallery.  Florida Southern College in Lakeland, Florida is home to the largest one-site-collection of Frank Lloyd Wright architecture in the world.  View photos of Frank Lloyd Wright’s “Child of the Sun” architecture on the beautiful campus by clicking here.

I’m a proud 1999 graduate of Florida Southern College. It was a beautiful campus back then and I am amazed to see the beauty expand over the past 12 years.  Drop by to see for yourself why The Princeton Review recently honored Florida Southern College as the #1 Most Beautiful Campus in the nation.  And, don’t forget your camera.  You’ll take home some beautiful memories.

This was the most enjoyable 30 minute break I’ve taken in a long time.  I highly recommend seeing “Blacklight by Al Kriston” before it closes. Find out for yourself, decide what you like and what you think.  You will definitely leave inspired and smiling.

On exhibit through October 28: Blacklight by Al Kriston. Melvin Gallery at Florida Southern College presents Winter Haven resident Al Kriston’s award winning work and impressive display of blacklight sculpture. When College is in session, the Melvin Gallery is open Monday through Friday, 9:00 a.m. until 4:00 p.m.

Check out the center column of the Polk Arts Website home page for a listing and summaries of what’s on exhibit right now in Polk County.  There is something for everyone.

Bev Hendricks

Attend arts activities in October and register for a chance to win awesome “ARTS” prizes! The rules are easy. Look for the Heart of the Arts Logo at participating arts and cultural events in Polk County.  Provide your contact information only one time at each activity, so we can contact you if you are a winner, and you are done. The events are listed in Art-i-facts Magazine and on the Polk Arts website.

The more activities you experience, the more opportunities you have to win. Drawings will take place in early November.

Oct 3: Auditions for “It’s A Wonderful Life” at 7pm

Oct 3: After School Art (Ages 5 and up) at Polk Museum of Art, 4:30-5:30pm

Oct 3-7: Explorations V Children’s Daily Sessions

Oct 5: RAW TV at Southeastern University

Oct 6: NOVA – “The Incredible Journey of the Butterflies” at Bok Tower Gardens

Oct 6: FSC’s Florida Lecture Series Welcomes Frank Laumer – “Soldiers, Seminoles, and Slavery: Florida and the Second Seminole War”

Oct 6-9: The Full Monty at Theatre Winter Haven

Oct 7: View & Review – Critiquing Emerging Artists (Photography) at Polk Museum of Art

Oct 7: Ask a Gardener at Bok Tower Gardens

Oct 7: People’s Choice at Arts on the Park

Oct 7: Half Price Admission to Explorations V Children’s Museum from 6-8pm

Oct 7: Cracker Storytelling Festival Ghost Stories at Polk County Historical Museum

Oct 7-8: THE EDGE Stage Read Series – “Hot L Baltimore” at Lakeland Community Theatre

View the complete October EVENT CALENDAR>>

October 1-27    Fear (Juried Exhibition)
Arts on the Park, 115 N. Kentucky Ave, Lakeland, FL 33801
Reception and Awards, Friday October 1, 2010 6-9 p.m.
Gallery hours are Noon – 4:00pm, Tuesday – Saturday.

October 1-29    Vilas Tonape Exhibition: Kruti
Melvin Gallery, Florida Southern College
111 Lake Hollingsworth Dr, Lakeland FL  33801
Opening reception is Friday, October 1 at 7pm in the Melvin Gallery.
Gallery Hours are 9am – 4pm, Monday – Friday when school is in session.

Oct 2-Dec 2: “Florida Expressions” Art exhibit featuring the works of Polly Tetrault, a self-taught artist whose pastel and oil paintings express the beauty in nature that is often taken for granted.
Bok Tower Gardens, 1151 Tower Blvd, Lake Wales, FL 33853
9am – 5pm daily

October 2 – January 8 at Polk Museum of Art (2 new exhibits)
Eye See America: Through the Lens of Joshua Mann Pailet
Visual Unity 2: View the results of “What happens when you partner 19 very different artists and tell them to make a piece of art together?”
Polk Museum of Art, 800 E. Palmetto St, Lakeland, FL  33801
Museum Hours: Tuesday – Saturday 10am – 5pm, Sunday 1 – 5pm.  Closed Mondays and major holidays.

Click here to learn more about arts and cultural happenings in Central Florida’s Polk County – The Heart of the Arts.

Well, I’m glad you asked!

Last Saturday, Florida Southern College celebrated the future home of the Frank Lloyd Wright-designed Tourism and Education Center, which will be located at the northeast corner of Johnson Avenue and McDonald Street. The Tourism and Education Center will be built using plans for a Usonian house that Mr. Wright designed as part of the campus master plan. Wright designed 18 structures for the campus, 12 of which were built over two decades from 1939 to 1958.

The Tourism and Education Center will provide a dedicated space for an introductory film on the history of  Wright’s career and 20-year relationship with Florida Southern College; a gift shop with a full inventory of Frank Lloyd Wright-related books, apparel, and souvenirs; a tourism kiosk with information on other Polk County attractions; exhibitions and conferences; and self-guided and docent-led walking tours.

Among Wright’s plans left on the drawing board was a Usonian house design meant to serve as economical faculty housing. Designed to control costs, Mr. Wright’s Usonian houses – which he intended to be built in a distinctly American style that was affordable for the middle class – had no attics, no basements, and little ornamentation. “Usonian” is an acronym for United States of North America. Keep checking back here and we will keep you updated on the progress of the building and when it will be ready to start welcoming visitors to the largest one-site collection of Frank Lloyd Wright architecture in the world.

1. Eat yummy ice cream!
2. Visit the museums: Polk Museum of Art, Explorations V Children’s Museum, Arts on the Park.
3. Explore Downtown using the City’s walking tour brochure.
4. Go to a First Friday event.
5. Take a walking tour of the outdoor sculptures and art.
6. Play a game of checkers in front of The General Store.
7. See a movie at the historic Polk Theatre.
8. Visit the Downtown Farmers Curb Market on a Saturday.
9. Explore the antique shops.
10. Surf the Internet using the SurfLakeland wifi.
11. Stroll Lake Mirror Promenade & Hollis Garden.
12. See a show at the Lakeland Center, Lakeland Community Theatre, or Imperial Symphony Orchestra.
13. Find historic Lakeland photos in the shops and restaurants.
14. Read a good book on a blanket in Munn Park.
15. Ride your bike around the lakes.
16. Visit Florida Southern College for the Frank Lloyd Wright architecture.
17. Fly a kite or play in the water spouts at Barnett Park.
18. Catch up with the local artists at the shops and galleries.
19. See how many different types of birds you can find at Lake Morton.
20. Walk your dog around Lake Mirror.
21. People watch along Kentucky Ave. while dining al fresco.
22. Catch a sports game at the neighborhood bars.
23. Have breakfast on Saturday DOWNTOWN!
24. Sign up for a guided historic walking tour.
25. Take a tour of Polk Theatre.

Every city and community in Polk County certainly has a long list of things to do, so send us yours! Either email your city’s list to kris@centralfloridasports.comor reply to this opostwith soe of your favorite things to do in Sunny Central Florida.

One of famed architect Frank Lloyd Wright’s most recognizable and famous works, the Guggenheim Museum in New York, is going to feature a display about Wright’s largest one-site work, the “Child of the Sun” campus at Florida Southern College in Lakeland. The exhibition “Frank Lloyd Wright: From Within Outward” will be up May 15-August 23, 2009 at the Guggenheimon Fifth Avenue in New York and will travel to the Guggenheim in Bilbao, Spain in October.

Florida Southern College will have a prominent position in the Rotunda, the main gallery, and will be discovered by many thousands of national and international visitors for the first time. As with the Water Dome World Premiere earlier this year, this event will draw national and international media attention for Polk County and Florida Southern College.