- November 25, 2024
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Every four months, the Environmental Discovery Center gets new art on its walls.
This is a result of a partnership with the Florida Women's Art Association, whose artists have been displaying a sample of their works in the EDC since August 2019. Located in the Central Park area at 601 Division Ave., the EDC is an educational hub that hosts programs, classes, and provides the community with a glimpse into the local ecosystem. In keeping with the center's mission, the art displayed by FLWAA artists is always themed around Florida's fauna and flora.
From now until July, local artists Marianne Verna and Christine Broussard are displaying their works. Both longtime artists, Verna and Broussard hold the EDC in high regard. There's art everywhere, Verna said, and the EDC is no exception. Simply looking at the native fish tank that sits inside could be inspiring.
“If you sit in here and watch the fish, pretty soon you’ll want to paint them," Verna said.
“The movement, the flow, the contrast,” Broussard said. “All those things that we bring to our paintings to make things appear as a focal point.”
One of the key parts of the partnership between FLWAA and the EDC is exposure for both groups, Verna said. Artists get to show off their work, and hopefully sell pieces or gain new commissions, while the EDC gets more foot traffic.
Additionally, the children that visit the EDC are exposed to art, which Broussard described is a way to promote beauty. She's been painting for about 20 years, working with watercolors and acrylics, and now, does so every day without looking at the clock. As COVID-19 conditions improve, and more art shows and receptions are being held, Broussard said artists are ready to come to life.
"A colorful life, like the flowers outside," she said.
Verna has been painting for about 40 years, and some of her seascapes are up on the EDC's wall. Art helps to relieve stress and clear one's mind she said.
“When you’re working on a painting, you don’t care about eating, you don’t care about sleeping," Verna said. "You’re not in a fever to get the artwork done — it isn’t like that, even if it’s a commission. You do the art because you love the art.”
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