Reef Life is a public art mural on the outside of the Pompano Beach Pier Garage. It is located on…read morethe exterior of the southeast stairwell on the Pompano Beach Pier Parking Garage next to the Tourism Center. The City of Pompano Beach commissioned Reef Life from South Florida based street artist and muralist Taylor Smith, AKA DREAMWEAVER. Interesting fact about Taylor Smith is she is left handed. Taylor was born in Oregon and raised near Atlanta. She received her BA in communications and fine art from Georgia College and State University in 2017. She works in the medium of spray paint and if heavily influenced by street art and graffiti and her favorite subject matter is nature. Reef Life covers the five levels of the stairwell of the garage. Inspired by the rich colors and marine life of the South Florida reef, you can see many of the fish and marine mammals in the mural that are making their home a few feet away in the ocean off the beach. In the mural there are dolphins, sea turtles, sharks, jellyfish, sting rays, Sergeant Major and Parrot Fish, the coral reef, and much more. I see a message of ocean conservation in it. It is such a vibrant art piece when you see it in person and it adds beauty to the pier area of Pompano Beach.

Green Turtle and Blue Tang is another one of the beautiful public art works in…read moreLauderdale-by-the-Sea by artist Laura Fisher Huck. I have always admired this piece at the entrance to Green Turtle Plaza, the home of one of my favorite sub shops, La Spada's. Laura Huck created several pieces for Lauderdale-by-the-Sea including the Coral Reef Arch at the town entryway. Town Manager Connie Hoffman first spotted Huck's work in Nova Scotia where the works were installed in 2002. Huck specialized in outdoor painted sculptures and has developed a process where they do not weather. She ended up designing five colorful sculptures for the city with inspiration drawn from her dives with scuba instructor Rene Bobadilla. Artist Laura Fisher Huck visualized, researched, designed, and then drew the art work. It was then cut and fabricated by a structural engineer. The pieces were made out of aluminum so it would not corrode, coated with zinc oxide primer, and then hand painted with UV protecting acrylic paint. During the last step, six coats of UV protecting epoxy were also applied. Green Turtle and Blue Tang was installed in 2013 and features a green sea turtle, the largest of the hard shelled turtles. They are unique because they are herbivores with a diet consisting of sea grass and algae. Green turtles are found around the world but their numbers have declined as they have been used for their meat and eggs. They have also lost nesting habitat due to coastal development. They are listed as an endangered species. Surrounding the turtle are colorful blue tangs, a fish often seen on Florida's reefs. The blue tangs are giving the turtle a bath by eating the algae off of its shell. In 2021 Lauderdale-by-the-Sea budgeted $200,000 to restore the Laura Fisher Huck sculptures by the beach. Green Turtle and Blue Tang has never looked better. I love the intricacy of this sculpture and it's theme. It's a great reminder to protect endangered sea turtles and keep your garbage off the beach. These and other sea turtles nest on the beach a few feet away March through October.

Do you like pompano? The fish, I mean. Have you had it? It's light, white, and flaky. It is my…read morefavorite fish to eat. It's great done piccatta, or almondine, or francaise style. And it's the namesake of the city of Pompano Beach. Years ago, there used to be huge "runs" of the fish right off shore. Now, not so much. But if you get a chance to try it -- if you ever see it on a south Florida menu -- do order it. Meanwhile, the City of Pompano Beach has adopted the fish as a sort of mascot or symbol. And it chose to use fish sculptures as one of their art in public places projects. They have over a dozen "fish" near their library/city hall/community center and by the beach, as well. I'm not sure exactly how many total there are in the City now. I know it's over 20 so far. This one, was just recently placed at the entrance to the Cypress Bend Complex. Heading south on Powerline Road, just south of Harrah's, you can turn in between the Walgreens and the Family Dollar stores and just drive straight ahead. You'll see it right in front of you by the lake. The fish are brightly colored and attract attention. They're fun and a good photo opportunity. So, it is both for the community and for tourist attention. Artists send in proposals to do them, and they are chosen (or awarded) the chance to put their art before the public. This newest painted fish is called "Lucky Leo". It was created by artist Sitka Dogan. He has done other art in public places in various cities in different mediums from chalk painting to murals. Next time you're in Pompano Beach, check it out. And it's also fun to try to find more of these fish sculptures throughout the city.

While searching on Yelp for vintage shops in Oakland Park, this Art Park popped up and almost…read morepassed by the small cement sign on the corner of Andrews Ave next to the Roselli Park Plaza. It was strange, since there was only one art exhibit in the grass visible only from the side roadway. A tower of multi colored hand painted squares depicting red ribbons and alot of awkward unexplainable designs. At the bottom of the exhibit was a placard advising the art was dedicated by the World Aids Museum and Educational Center called Project H.O.P.E. Not something I would recommend driving out of your way to experience.

I stumbled on this interesting little park on the way home from picking up my Yelp awards and it…read moreturns out it has quite a bit of history. The entire block that this park sits on was once owned by Lucius Kinsey. He became one of the first settlers to the area when he moved to what would become Oakland Park in 1914 with his wife Nora. Oakland park became a city in 1929 and Mr. Kinsey served on the first city council. Mr. Kinsey eventually gave the part of his property that is Art Park to Leroy and Iris Kinsey Chadwick. They built a home where they lived for the next 50 years. Leroy, or Roy as he was known was also a city councilman and he owned a construction company that built many of the homes in Oakland Park. The couples daughter Darleen was born at home on January 6, 1926 and was listed as the first baby born in the town of Floranada, the first name of Oakland Park. When Darlene grew up she became the City Clerk for 25 years. Art Park opened in November of 2013. It is open from dawn to dusk. The park is ADA accessible with sidewalks, a seating wall, open space for events, and sculptures. There are large red abstract sculptures surrounding an open space, an art wall, and a piece dedicated to the AIDS epidemic. There is free street parking. The park is small but I love history and art so I was delighted to find it. Well done Oakland Park for marking your history and bringing culture to the community.

I always love discovering public art and this is one of my favorite pieces. Coral Reef Arch was…read morecreated by artist Laura Fisher Huck in 2013. Town Manager Connie Hoffman first spotted Huck's work in Nova Scotia where the works were installed in 2002. Huck specialized in outdoor painted sculptures and has developed a process where they do not weather. She ended up designing five colorful sculptures for the city with inspiration drawn from her dives with scuba instructor Rene Bobadilla. The largest of the sculptures created for Lauderdale-by-the-Sea is Coral Arch at the town's entryway. It stands on the town's side of the Causeway Bridge on West Commercial Blvd. You can park in the Eagle Ray shopping plaza for a closer look. Artist Laura Fisher Huck visualized, researched, designed, and then drew the art work. It was then cut and fabricated by a structural engineer. The pieces were made out of aluminum so it would not corrode, coated with zinc oxide primer, and then hand painted with UV protecting acrylic paint. During the last step, six coats of UV protecting epoxy were also applied. All of the care taken was worth it because ten years later, despite sitting in salt air, the sculpture still looks great. Coral reef Arch has several sea life animals including a loggerhead sea turtle, yellow tail snapper, queen triggerfish, the look down, and spit fin butterflyfish. All of these are native to Florida and can be found in the ocean a short distance away. I love the intricacy of this sculpture and it's theme. It's a great reminder to keep your garbage off the beach. There are even benches attached at the base so you can sit for a spell.

The Unity Beacon is public art installed at the roundabout at 13th St. and Old Dixie Hwy in 2017…read more The project was headed by H.O.M.E.S., Inc and the it was created by artists Yves Gabriel and R. Todd Schwing. The sculpture was named United Beacon because it is designed to represent the strength of this community and how the people in it support each other. The planter at the base of the sculpture represents roots and growth, the middle of the sculpture represents the obstacles the community has had to overcome, and the top represents four people hugging to show how people who are different can find common ground and come together. The sculpture lights up at night symbolizing a guide that lights the way for all of the progress that will take place in the city in the years to come. I enjoy discovering art and learning about it. I especially love the symbolism in this piece. Unity is an important idea especially during a time when our country seems so divided by race and politics. During Election Day I was ruminating on how far apart everyone seems to be in their views. Learning about this sculpture gives me hope. The message on how to make things better is in this sculpture, we need to come together and help each other. Unity is how we overcome.

Located in the middle of the roundabout at the intersection of NE 13th Street and Dixie Blvd, this…read morepretty piece of art was installed about two years ago. From their web page, "The Unity Beacon of Central City is a community inspired project to help unify and strengthen our community. A project involving the participation of local artist Todd Schwing, Yves Gabriel and members our community. Today Unity Beacon stands tall at the intersection on Ne 13 Street and Dixie Highway." I don't know that I've seen art that has its own Facebook page, https://www.facebook.com/unity.beacon/posts/d41d8cd9/1950929165165677/ [Review 13286 overall, 604 of 2020.]

Fabulous! Beautiful and educational. Well worth the stroll up Commercial Boulevard. Great public…read moreart!

Fabulous Grand Opening of a spectacular local gallery, featuring International Artists and diverse…read moreart forms! Check it out!

I attended Fay's Paint and Sip event in Pompano Beach at Anne Marie's Pizza. She is a talented…read moreartist and a great host! Check out her events on Eventbrite!

From the owner: I specialize in turning a blank canvas into a dream…read more I have my original Fay Tality Art line available for purchase and I love painting custom ordered pieces as well! I’m also available for murals, both outdoor and interior design. Feel like spicing up your windows for a holiday or big sale? I can do that too! For all inquires please feel free to contact me! -Fay