Coastal Breeze News

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 If you have not yet visited the Marco Island Historical Museum to see the marvelous art exhibit by local painter Phyllis Pransky, do yourself a favor and drop in this month. The paintings will remain through December 3 and are a virtuoso display of Pransky’s talent. Some are for sale and others are on loan from local owners. Hours are 9-4 Tuesday through Saturday and admission is free. A remarkable exhibit opened at our sister gallery at the Art League on Winterberry this week. The show explores America at War through the use of photos, uniforms, posters, medals, paintings and ... Read More »

New community theatre group announces auditions for February show.   The Island Players will hold open auditions for their February show, I’m Herbert..,and Other Strangers on Monday November 28th and Tuesday November 29th at Centennial Bank, located on the second floor, 615 East Elkcam Circle on Marco Island at 7:00 pm. I’m Herbert…and Other Strangers is a collection of five distinct views of love and family relationships at various stages in life. You will laugh with them and relate to them, but most of all, you will love them. Five females and five male actors are sought between the ages ... Read More »

Coastal Breeze News Staff   The traveling Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall officially known as “The Wall That Heals” will be installed on Marco Island at Veterans Community Park from December 7 through 10. This national touring exhibit was created by the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund and has traveled to more than 300 communities across the United States. Featuring a half-scale replica of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C., it is accompanied by a mobile museum which tells the story of the Vietnam War, the Wall, and the era. Touching Americans with its message of honor and healing, it is ... Read More »

By Xiomara Martinez Home Decor When it comes to decorating our homes for the holidays, it is much easier to follow traditional décor like using ornaments for Christmas with red and green color schemes, or orange, yellow or brown themes for Thanksgiving. Some homemakers prefer tradition and others want to create a new look. If you go by current trends, there are more options today than in past years. And, as people seem more open to change, the tendency to follow new trends is growing in 2011. This year, Christmas themes incorporate traditional decorating elements with different color schemes. Blue, ... Read More »

Tara O’Neill  A different sort of beast was roaming in full display at Rookery Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve on Tuesday, November 15. Rare and wonderful Florida Artists were out in numbers for the opening reception of the Rookery Bay Annual Painting Exhibition sponsored by the United Arts Council of Collier County and the Friends of Rookery Bay. (While the Florida Artist is not on the endangered list, it is often considered a threatened species, especially in these times of economic uncertainty.) Since 2004, the UAC (which I have told you to join about a million times) has teamed with ... Read More »

When the dream began a small group of military veterans, most of them old soldiers, sailors, marines and airmen, the “Greatest Generation” from World War II, sought to have a fitting memorial at Veterans Park. On November 11, 2011, the dream becomes reality. The Memorial is located near the water and is in a beautiful, tranquil place for resting and contemplation. Members of Marco Island’s Chapter of the Veterans of Foreign Wars, the Civil Air Patrol, Coast Guard Auxiliary and many patriotic residents of Marco Island made the Memorial possible by contributions, and by participating in the planning of Veterans ... Read More »

The Marco Island Center for the Arts is proud to announce that Tuskegee artist and historian, Mr. Clint Martin, and Tuskegee pilot, Lt Col. Leo R. Gray, USAF Ret., will be a focal point for the gallery opening of Salute To Service: America at War, on November 8, 5:30PM-7:30PM. It is free and open to the public; donations are welcomed. The exhibition will be open through the month of November; it blends war memorabilia and original paintings, both from local veterans, their families and local artists. Elaine Michaelis of Marco Island has led the gallery committee on collecting memorabilia from ... Read More »

Tara O’Neill I was recently part of an artists’ forum sponsored by the United Arts Council of Collier County. (If you are not already a member I suggest you get on it – they are the backbone of the Arts in our area.) The general topic was promoting and marketing art in an uncertain economy. Take a roomful of perfectly happy artists and ask them what their problems/obstacles are, and before your eyes the lightest of hearts can darken into something fairly murky. One comment that struck me came from a photographer who fretted digital imagery was going to be ... Read More »

On Saturday, November 12, the Friends of the Museum of the Everglades will host a reception from 1:00 to 3:00 PM for Chokoloskee resident, Bruce Hitchcock, whose photographs are on exhibit with Tyler McDonald through December. Bruce was born in South Florida and came to the Everglades 35 years ago. For the past 20 years he has worked as a fishing and photography guide. He enjoys exploring the Everglades backcountry in his kayak and feels this gives him the perspective of seeing nature from the inside as one of its own. His photographs capture the passion he has for this ... Read More »

Tara O’Neill  There’s an unorthodox gallery in town. The Marco Island Branch of the Collier County Library hosts a monthly rotation of original artwork by members of the Marco Island Center for the Arts (home of the Art League) – a satellite gallery of sorts. The exhibits feature one artist a month, allowing visitors to get a more comprehensive feel for that artist. Don’t know about you, but a reading room surrounded by art is my idea of heaven on earth. The month of October the Library features the work of Bill Andrews. Andrews came late to the game of ... Read More »

Richard Condle and Jeanne Taylor of Naples, Florida were thrilled to learn that they won the framed presentation piece featuring the Save Vanishing Species semi-postal stamp. Postmaster Richard Barber offered attendees at the National Estuaries Day event held at Rookery Bay National Estuaries Research Reserve on September 24th an opportunity to win the beautiful framed piece as well as purchase the stamps. Postmaster Barber worked the crowds at the event encouraging use of the semi-postal stamp which provides funding to the United States Fish and Wildlife Service to help save vanishing species which includes our local marine turtle. Over 500 ... Read More »

Be sure to stop by the Marco Library on Winterberry Drive this month to see Bill Andrew’s art show of his oil paintings. Bill retired 18 years ago and moved to the Naples area from Indiana in 2004 with his wife, Linda. When Bill started to paint in 2010, he discovered how much he enjoyed it. His paintings are colorful and imaginative. This is a joint venture between the Marco Public Library and the Marco Island Center for the Arts. Monthly, one artist shows are displayed at the library for the public’s enjoyment. Paintings are also for sell. Next month’s ... Read More »

By Natalie Strom  Is it a brassiere? Is it a piece of art? It’s both! The artists of the Artist Colony at the Esplanade displayed their “bra art” at their monthly ArtWalk on Wednesday, September 28th. These hand-crafted pieces of lingerie/artwork were then brought to the Marco Island Center for the Arts for the “Bras for Life” Auction benefiting the American Cancer Society. In honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month, the seven bras on display at the ArtWalk were a part of the twenty bras auctioned off on October 6th. The success of the auction was certainly due to the ... Read More »

Patricia Huff Excitement comes to Everglades City when stone crab season opens every year on October 15! Last Sunday we started the celebration with the 3rd annual “Blessing of the Fleet.” Local fishermen and their families arrived at the Rod & Gun Club on their crab boats as visitors and residents welcomed them with applause and local children lined the dock with rose petals. Pastor John Gilmore from Copeland Baptist Mission, Pastor Morris Dantin from Chokoloskee Church of God, and Pastor Jim Fross from the Everglades Baptist Church blessed each vessel, praying for their safety. Earlier in the afternoon there ... Read More »

Tara O’Neill Why in the world are art lovers converging on Shirley Street, the traditionally industrial neighborhood in Naples? I’m guessing it’s for a chance to see fine artists of all genres at work in their studios. Okay, I’m not guessing, I’m filthy with inside information. Shirley Street Galleries and Studios, formerly the notorious Shirley Street 16, is a group that began with five members eight months ago and has grown to include 23 artists. A diverse group of Florida artists, each studio showcases unique and original art. Fine Art Watercolorist Barbara Groenteman, who moved her gallery to Shirley St. ... Read More »

The Marco Island Center for the Arts will hold a silent and live auction for six celebrity bras, along with more than 20 artistic interpretations of bras by local artists, on Thursday, October 6 from 5:30-8PM. Admission is free. The celebrity bras are signed gifts from Gloria Steinem, Jane Fonda, Lily Tomlin, Gloria Feldt, Jesse Golden and Irina Voronina, Miss January 2001 for Playboy magazine. These bras and more will be auctioned off during a fun-filled evening with wine and hors d’oeuvres. A silent auction is also included in this event, along with paintings and photographs celebrating the female form. “The ... Read More »

Patricia Huff The court case requesting access to the Smallwood Store in Chokoloskee resumed on September 15, following the first hearing on September 8. Early in the morning, a large crowd of supporters for the Smallwood Store gathered in front of the Collier County Courthouse. Many came from the east coast of Florida where they said the closure of Mamie Street was highlighted in the media. They were astonished that a developer could rip up the only access road to the historic Smallwood Museum. Also participating in the rally were musicians Valerie Wisecracker, JRoberts and Tom Porter (of Goodland) who ... Read More »

Award-winning artist Tara O’Neill is displaying a collection of original oil paintings at the Marco Island Library throughout the month of September. The exhibition is part of a series sponsored by the Marco Island Center for the Arts (formerly Art League of Marco Island). Much of O’Neill’s art is inspired by Goodland, the historic fishing village off the southeast tip of Marco. “The mitten-size island of Goodland has been my home for many years; a community that lives not just by the sea, but from it.  My village is afloat with juice-colored flowers and has been worked by generations of ... Read More »

Richard Alan Again, things are a bit tricky on the rock surrounded by water, a new bridge, torn up streets, detours everywhere, all this with an unpredictable season in the future. I chose this moment in time to move my jewelry business because of the alignment of the planets and tea leaf readings and yes, I factored in this marvelous economy we have been experiencing. I figured it would take a few days to clear out Front Street. I figured wrong, it took two weeks. Set up the new shop in Island Plaza and get it running in a couple ... Read More »