Host committee members and sponsors of the newest McKee Botanical Garden installation – Roar of the Dinosaur – enjoyed an absolutely gorgeous evening last Monday at an opening night reception to meet artist Guy Darrough, creator of the 14 life-sized dinosaur replicas that will be on exhibit through April. The evening was held to express appreciation for their support, which provides the primary funding for selected exhibits such as this one.
Roughly 65 invited guests walked along luminaria-lit pathways, getting a first peek at the prehistoric beasts – from a tiny 14-inch Sordes to an enormous 33-foot Daspletosaur – that now appear perfectly at home nestled among the tropical foliage. Guests also relished cocktails and hors d’oeuvres in the outdoor Spanish Kitchen before heading into the Hall of Giants for a delightful dinner prepared by Osceola Bistro.
Darrough, a fossil hunter, amateur paleontologist and fabrication sculptor of prehistoric animals, related that it had taken just shy of six months to painstakingly recreate each of the dinosaurs and transport them to McKee, and another three days to install them.
“It’s the 10th anniversary of the original Dinosaur Invasion, which was the single largest exhibition with 48,000 visitors; up until last year’s Lego installation with 54,000 visitors,” said McKee’s executive director Christine Hobart. “Dinosaurs are one of those exhibitions that kids enjoy as well as adults, so we get really large attendance numbers.”
“It’s hard to overcome the numbers of people that came in to the Lego exhibit and the holiday events,” said Sheila Marshall. She added with a laugh, “We are doing very well but I said to my husband George that we have to sponsor this one because at least it is something older than we are.”
The garden also currently features the Stickwork installation, the weaved sapling sculptures recently completed by artist Patrick Dougherty. The two exhibitions are each throwbacks to ancient times, albeit different eras.
“They are complete contrasts. You have Stickwork blending into the garden seamlessly, but then you have the dinosaurs, which look so realistic tucked back into the jungle,” said Hobart.
In fact, many of the creatures blend into the surrounding landscape so well that guests were occasionally startled by them when rounding a bend along the pathways.
“I thought it was going to be sort of Disney-like but they are very real looking,” said Gerri Ripp, as she and husband Bob looked at a Parasaurolophus nestled alongside the lily pond.
“I am so excited to bring my two little boys who have been talking about this for the last two or three weeks,” said Osceola Bistro Chef/Owner Chris Bireley, who also manages the onsite café, Osceola Bistro at McKee. “Every time we pass by here my son Crew says ‘Daddy I want to see the dinosaurs!’”
Darrough is founder of Lost World Studios and curator of the Bollinger County Museum of Natural History in Marble Hill, Mo., where the dinosaurs will find a resting place at the conclusion of the tour.
Tied in to the Roar of the Dinosaurs exhibition, which runs until May 1, is the Annual Motorcar Exhibit on Feb. 13 which this year features “extinct” automobiles no longer manufactured.