Living history is on display throughout the gallery walls of Sarasota’s Art Ovation Hotel. The hotel, which Francine Birbragher, the curator of the gallery, calls “a cultural center with rooms'' is home to six separate art exhibits from internationally renowned artists ranging from paintings from Cuban artists Andres Valerio and Ana Albertina Delgado to the Rainier Hildebrant’s collection original painted slabs from the Berlin wall. These unique exhibits create distinct atmospheres around the spaces of the Art Ovation Hotel and will be on display through Tuesday, September 6th.

The paintings from the late Andres Valerio, featured on floors three, four, and five in “Tribute to Andres Valerio”, hold particular significance to the hotel. “We had spoken to him about doing a show at the hotel prior to his death and since then his family has gotten into contact with us. This exhibition is largely in his honor,” says Birbragher.

On floors six, seven, and eight, “Ana Albertina Delgado: The Human Mysteries and the Indifference of the Universe”, highlights the work of another groundbreaking Cuban artist. “She’s one of the few Cuban artists that address womanhood/motherhood in a unique way in terms of figures and colors,” states Birbragher.

Featured on the hotel’s first floor and lobby are “Alexander Solotzew: Life in Colors” and “The Rainer Hildebrandt Collection: Original Painted Slabs from the Berlin Wall”. “Solotzwez who was born in Russia, splits his time between Germany and Sarasota, creates beautiful, vibrant canvases inspired by his travels that depict the happiness of life,” says Birbragher.

“The Rainer Hildebrandt Collection: Original Painted Slabs from the Berlin Wall” features six pieces - five in the lobby and one on the eighth floor - painted by two different Russian artists. Those in the lobby are from Vladimir Schmachtin and the piece on the eighth floor was done by Tamara Dubinovskaja. The exhibit will also include an original work from Ringling College of Art and Design student Franziska Fleissner, an Austrian-born artist who won a competition to paint a piece on an unmarked, original slab from the Berlin Wall.

Additionally exhibits, “Peter Jacob Christ: Disappearing Signs of Life” and The Florida Watercolor Society’s 2021-2022 Traveling Exhibition will be shown in the hotel’s restaurant until April 29th.

Art Ovation Hotel, 1255 N Palm Ave, Sarasota, 941-316-0808. 

Pictured: Alexander Solotzew: My Valentine's Angel 2017 Oil on canvas 43 x 48 inches. Photo courtesy of the artist.

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Veteran videographer David Lionel is moderating an interactive screening of Mikhail Gorbachev, A Man for the Ages at the Palmetto Branch Library, 923 6th St. W., Thursday, April 28, from 6 to 7:30 PM. This short video portrays the life, deeds, and thoughts of one of the great men of the 20th Century. An interactive format encourages participants, gathering in small circles, to express their deepest feelings about his example vs. the current Russian leader. Mikhail Gorbachev, the last Premier of the Soviet Union from 1985 to 1991, ended the cold war. In negotiations with US Presidents Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush, he forged a path to peace with the West through mutual respect and inclusion. Rather than maintaining the Russian Empire, he refused to prop up the puppet governments oppressing Eastern Europe. Domestically, he encouraged political openness – glasnost - and enabled economic restructuring – perestroika. From within, he engineered the Communist Party’s loss of control over all aspects of Soviet society. The elected Congress of People’s Deputies he created undermined the one-party state. His vision and actions manifested revolutionary thinking to achieve conflict resolution and enhance human unity. His way offers hope for lasting peace, in place of endless war-making. David Lionel lived for three months in the Soviet Union during the fall of 1990. On many nights, he went with a colleague and a translator at 3 AM to a Moscow State TV archive to select footage from Gorbachev’s life. Lionel has enjoyed a long career covering major social movements as an advocacy video producer and editor. 

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You know a writer is talented when she/he/they can outdo previous stories with a truly original voice and idea. Heti’s writing is so artful, she also makes it difficult to give her book a just description, but because it’s so inspiring, I’ll do my best.

Pure Colour is written as a parable, a simply told story about deep metaphysical topics. The novel relates the story of a college age woman named Mira who goes off to college and bumbles her way through self-doubt, attempts at connection and side hustels, until experiencing the death of a loved one.

In a mythological framework, Mira rests on three categories in which to place humans; fish (community centered folks), bears (monogamous introspective types) and birds (free spirited artists) and considers herself the latter. From there, her easy gondola-like experience goes full flume ride into magical realism as Mira’s attempts to make sense of what the meaning of life is in what she refers to as God’s first draft.

Heti’s novel helped me look at death and life in an entirely new way. Furthermore, Mira’s experience with imperfect relationships with her father, as well as her attempts at romantic love, prove the point for striving for reconciliation and even living in the first place.

Pure Colour is available now at BookStore1 Sarasota at 117 S. Pineapple Ave. or via their online store at www.sarasotabooks.com. Pure Colour by  Sheila Heti. Publication Date: February 15, 2022  ISBN: 9780374603946.
 

The Hermitage Artist Retreat is pleased to announce the launch of the new Ruby E. Crosby Alumni Music Series at the Hermitage. The premiere event, “Soulful Strings: An Evening of Harp Music,” will be presented on Tuesday, June 7 at 8pm at Marie Selby Botanical Gardens, featuring acclaimed harpist and returning Hermitage Fellow Ashley Jackson. The outdoor event is free and open to the public with a $5/person registration fee. The Ruby E. Crosby Alumni Music Series at the Hermitage offers the opportunity for a distinguished Hermitage alumni composer or musician to return for additional residency time and a special community concert. This initiative is made possible by a generous multi-year gift from the Ruby E. and Carole Crosby Family Foundation. Hermitage Trustee Carole Crosby initiated this gift as a special tribute to her mother Ruby, who helped to inspire her deep love of music. Ashley Jackson is a particularly fitting Hermitage alumna to launch this new initiative, as Carole Crosby is a harpist herself, having graduated from the Curtis Institute of Music and played in both the Atlanta Symphony and Detroit Symphony. 

Pictured: Hermitage Fellow and Harpist Ashley Jackson. Photo Credit: Julia Comita.

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Construction has begun on the renovation and expansion of the Sarasota County School District's Booker High School Visual Performing Arts (VPA) Center. SchenkelShultz Architecture designed improvements to breathe new life into the theater and enhance the performative and technical quality of the facility, reflecting Booker High School VPA's reputation as a premier Visual and Performing Arts program in the state of Florida. The improvements will expand the public lobby, providing flexibility as a pre-function gathering area, event space, and gallery to showcase student artwork. The renovation encompasses a complete overhaul of the theater space, including a new balcony and tiered orchestra level, as well as comfort, sightline, and acoustical enhancements that improve the overall experience for the audience. The project also includes an expansion to house a new black box theater, green room, costume shop, and classrooms. The project is expected to be completed by the end of 2022.  

PopStroke Entertainment Group, a national leader in golf entertainment and co-owned by Greg Bartoli and Tiger Woods’ TGR Ventures, announced the official opening of its PopStroke Sarasota location is set for Thursday, April 28 at noon. PopStroke is a technology-infused golf entertainment venue featuring Tiger Woods’ TGR Design team’s one-of-a-kind golf experience with two 18-hole putting courses. The venue features an outdoor dining area with a full menu and expansive selection of craft beer, wine, signature cocktails, ice cream along with an outdoor area and a playground. The Sarasota location at 195 University Town Center Drive is the first of the company’s properties to feature a two-story layout with a rooftop bar and private event space. PopStroke’s customized mobile app allows customers to order drinks and food to be delivered directly to them anywhere on the course, showcase their scores on a digital scoreboard, and earn loyalty rewards. All outdoor dining offers contactless ordering via the PopStroke mobile app. TGR Design created two 18-hole putting courses entirely with synthetic turf, incorporating undulations, fairways, bunkers, and rough as seen on traditional golf courses. The Tiger Red Course challenges even the most experienced putters with strong contouring and tricky hole locations. The Tiger Black Course has softened contours to create an ideal course for families and anyone new to golf. 

Meet Marissa Arvonio, who in 2020, on her 35th birthday, received a lifesaving kidney and pancreas transplant, will share her story and express her gratitude for the critical role the HCA Florida Blake Hospital team played in the donation process that saved her life. April is Donate Life Month and April 22 marks the special Blue and Green Day, to help spread the importance of registering to be an organ donor. The flag-raising event honors patients and families who have made the decision to be organ or tissue donors. HCA Florida Blake Hospital President and CEO Steve Nierman will open the ceremony. Lifelink of Florida Medical Director, Victor Bowers, MD, will share the importance of the role of community partners in the transplant process. Transplant recipient Marissa Arvonio will share her inspiring story and initiate the Donate Life flag-raising. Blake Trauma Outreach Coordinator, Cindy Filice, BS, RN, TCRN, will close the ceremony with a butterfly release.

Friday, April 22, 10:30 a.m.-11:00 a.m., HCA Florida Blake Hospital, 2020 59th Street West, Bradenton Hospital, Main entrance flag pole. 

SRQ MEDIA's Giving Coast initiative celebrates the stories of nonprofit organizations during two special months - April and December. We will be sharing stories of giving in video, in print and online throughout both months. Click here to learn more about the incredible work of Cat Depot.