As holiday stragglers set off leftover fireworks across town, the storm-chasing photographers of Big Bolt Media will be showcasing highlights from nature’s own light show with a new exhibition opening tonight at Connect Bradenton. It will be the first gallery exhibition for Big Bolt Media and the first show in Connect Bradenton’s revamped co-working space. A reception with the artists will be held tonight from 6pm to 10pm.

With five photographers from Big Bolt Media participating, around 40 images will be on display throughout the Connect Bradenton space, capturing idyllic sunset scenes, billowing and whirling cloud formations and, of course, lots of lightning. “A lot of people are afraid of it, and so a lot of people don’t really get to enjoy the beauty of storms,” says Justin Labadie, a member of Big Bolt Media who has been chasing storms and photographing lightning for about five years now. “We hope to show how cool lightning is.”

And although the Southwest Florida audience where Big Bolt Media operates will undoubtedly be familiar with the storms that become a near daily occurrence throughout the summer, Labadie feels confident that few will have seen lightning as clearly, distinctly—and closely—as they will from Big Bolt Media’s show. “We like getting right into the thick of it,” he says, recalling an incident from just a couple weeks prior, when lightning hit the roof he was shooting from. “A leaderbolt jumped out of the clouds,” he says, “and it struck right on the other side of the parking garage.” But Labadie got the shot. And that’s what matters.

“The cool thing about lightning is that every shot is different,” Labadie says. Even a shot of the same bolt at the same moment can give a wildly different picture if from a different perspective. And the lens always reveals more than the human eye, focused on that central leaderbolt. “The camera can pick up way more than the eye can see,” says Labadie. “There are sometimes thousands of other fingers coming off, searching for something to strike.”

Big Bolt Media’s debut show opens tonight at 6pm at Connect Bradenton, with the artists in attendance. 

Photo by Justin Labadie.

It takes a village to serve a tasty scoop. The American Honey Creamery food-truck delivers nothing less, preparing custom flavors while supporting local businesses. Fresh from their Connecticut dairy farm, the Converse sisters rotate monthly creations—think Strawberry Rhubarb Pie, Cinnamon Bun, Boot Scootin’ Bourbon and Cowboy Cookie—and the town favorite: American Honey. Myakka’s Gold Apiary’s 100% pure honey swirls in a staple vanilla base, made of milks and creams from family-run farms across Florida. Then a dash of sea salt on top, as it should be with every sweetness.

Flavors rotate monthly based on what neighborhood fruits are in season and all baked good toppings come from Arcadia’s Cookie 911. Track the American Honey Creamery truck anywhere from IMG Academy to Asolo Rep, or Bradenton’s SR64 Home Depot every Sunday. Kick off July right with buy one pint, get one 50% off, all month long.

Follow American Honey Creamery for its ever-changing route, promotions and monthly flavors on Instagram and Facebook @americanhoneycreamery. 

Pictured: Mindy and Ali Converse of American Honey Creamery. Photo by Wild Ahava Studio.

American Honey Creamery

Ringling College of Art and Design and Semkhor Productions has announced the wrap of Season Ten of the Ringling College Studio Labs, and that the 2019 Summer Studio Labs feature film, Acting: The First Six Lessons, with Beau Bridges, will begin shooting July 5 in Sarasota. The project is a hybrid documentary/feature film based on a play of the same name written by Beau and Emily Bridges, in turn based on the book of the same name written by Richard Boleslavsky.

Acting: The First Six Lessons has been in pre-production for the past three months with Ringling College Film Program graduates and seniors staffing key positions on the project. More than 30 Film students are also working on the film under the guidance of Ringling College Film Program Head Bradley Battersby. The opportunity for experiential learning that enables students to work alongside industry professionals before graduation is a hallmark of the Ringling College Film Program. 

Ringling College Studio Labs

Mote Marine Laboratory & Aquarium has announced that Dr. Erinn Muller, science director of Mote’s Elizabeth Moore International Center for Coral Reef Research & Restoration and manager for Mote’s Coral Health & Disease Research Program, has been awarded the prestigious Presidential Early Career Awards for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE). This award is the highest honor bestowed by the U.S. government on scientists and engineers who are beginning their independent research careers and show exceptional promise for leadership in science and technology.

Muller, who began her career at Mote in 2012 as a Postdoctoral Fellow, has quickly become one of the worldwide leaders in coral health and disease research. At Mote, Muller is one of the primary responders in dealing with a devastating coral disease in the Florida Reef Tract, working to identify the pathogen of the disease and outline a plan for recovery. Through the National Science Foundation (NSF) Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) Program, Muller has worked since 2015 to study resiliency with threatened staghorn coral, looking at major environmental stressors, such as disease, rising ocean temperatures, and ocean acidification. 

https://mote.org/

Five Florida public school arts teachers will showcase and discuss the work they’ve developed during their three-week stay at the Hermitage Artist Retreat, on Friday, July 19, 5pm, at the Hermitage. The five artist/teachers are the winners of the 2019 State Teacher/Artist Residency program (STAR), presented by the Hermitage and the Florida Alliance for Arts Education (FAAE). They received a three-week summer residency, July 1-21, at the Hermitage, where they live and work as artists, without any expectation, schedule or demands.

The chosen five are Cheryl Meehan, a visual arts teacher at Freedom Elementary in Bradenton; Robert Constable, a music composition teacher at Crestwood Elementary in Tampa; David Martin, a visual arts teacher at Bonita Springs Elementary in Naples; Julie Orsini-Shakher, a visual arts teacher at Dr. Michael Krop Senior High in Hollywood; and Mirena Suarez, a visual arts teacher at Ada Merritt K-8 Center in Miami.

Reservations for this free series are required and can be requested at the Hermitage website. 

Hermitage Artist Retreat

The "No Swim" advisories issued Wednesday, July 3, for Venice Beach and Lido Casino Beach have been lifted. Florida Department of Health in Sarasota County officials received testing results at a satisfactory level meeting both the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and state recreational water standards. Residents and visitors may return to swimming and other water sports at those sites. The "no swim" advisory signage has been removed.

The advisory for Brohard Beach remains in effect. Brohard Beach will be re-sampled Friday, with results by 2pm, Saturday.

Check the latest reports on beach conditions at the website below. 

Florida Healthy Beaches Program