The Vero Beach Museum of Art has been a hub of activity all summer long, with many of its numerous programs related to the Rock ‘N’ Roll Billboards of the Sunset Strip: Photographs by Robert Landau exhibition, on display through Sept. 15.
Among the initiatives, each intended to celebrate the lasting legacy of billboard art while at the same time fostering the museum’s objective to encourage “inclusive and participatory art environments,” was a Billboard Bonanza event during one of its free admission Saturdays.
Children and adults were invited to participate in a public art project by painting sections of a colorful sign that celebrated the “vibrant and dynamic spirit of the rock ’n’ roll era.”
“So essentially we wanted to come up with an idea that connected with the billboard exhibition,” said Pamela Londono, VBMA public programs manager.
“We love the community aspect of the billboards, and we really wanted to push the idea as part of our family programming. I thought this was an excellent opportunity for a community mural.”
Londono said their facilities team was asked to build the large ‘billboard’ out of plywood, which was then painted white.
“We worked with teaching artist Barry Shapiro. I knew that he’d done murals before, so I approached him. We thought of a design together that we thought would represent what we wanted to do here today.”
Shapiro’s imaginative design featured a lion – a reference to the majestic lion poised on a pedestal at the front of the museum – rocking out with a red guitar against a backdrop touting ‘VBMA Rocks’ in primary colors, with musical notes atop a multicolored staff.
The outline of the design was portioned off into assorted pieces and the staff laid out neat rows of vibrant acrylic paints, each numbered to match appropriate areas on the billboard.
Participants could pick one or more sections to paint using various-sized brushes and colors.
“They’re all assigned with numbers, like a paint-by-number, and people are doing their thing. And at the bottom, they’re signing their names,” said Londono. “We’re hoping to display it somewhere around the studios or maybe outside. For the first time trying this, I’m really proud of it.”
Children were also given coloring sheets of the same design that they could work on there or take home.
As a relative newcomer to the area, Connie Chambers said this was the first time her family had visited the museum together.
“It’s nice that they can be hands-on with something. At most museums they can’t touch anything,” she said.
“Our daughter, Hayle, had visited with a school field trip and kept saying we had to come as a family. We didn’t know they had a kids’ area, so I’m glad we found a new place to explore.”
At 3 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 31, the VBMA will host a free lecture by Emmy Award-winning broadcast journalist and historian Bob Kealing on “Good Day Sunshine State: The Beatles in 1964 Florida,” a local perspective on how their music influenced Florida’s cultural scene.
Museum admission that day and the lecture are free.
For more information, visit VBMuseum.org.
Photos by Mary Schenkel
