CSMART to Participate in BLUE STAR Museums

Coral Springs Museum of Art is one of more than 1,800 museums across America to offer free admission to military personnel and their families this summer in collaboration with the National Endowment for the Arts, Blue Star Families, and the Department of Defense

Today, the Coral Springs Museum of Art announced the launch of Blue Star Museums, a collaboration among the National Endowment for the Arts, Blue Star Families, the Department of Defense and more than 1,800 museums across America to offer free admission to all active duty military personnel and their families from Memorial Day through Labor Day 2013. Leadership support has been provided by MetLife Foundation through Blue Star Families. The complete list of participating museums is available at: www.arts.gov/bluestarmuseums.

"Blue Star Museums is a collaboration between the arts and military communities," said NEA Acting Chairman Joan Shigekawa. "Our work with Blue Star Families and with more than 1,800 museums ensures that we can reach out to military families and thank them for their service and sacrifice."

Welcome To Our Team - Julia Black Andrews

Julia comes to the Coral Springs Museum of Art with extensive experience in creating and evaluating educational programs, working with gallery art exhibits and events involving individual artists, schools, teachers, local businesses, professionals and community leaders. Most recently, Julia developed and managed the diverse programs at ArtServe in Fort Lauderdale. One of her recent accomplishments includes the Broward County Outstanding Partnership of the Year Award for ArtServe's Eco-Art Therapy Program. She is a painter and past chair of the Broward Art Guild. Julia also serves on the Pompano Beach Public Art Committee. We are pleased to have her join our team! Julia can be reached at 954-340-5000 or jandrews@coralsprings.org.

Photos from the 2013 Golf Tournament

The golf tournament was a day of great fun, starting with a BBQ lunch, followed by a friendly putting green contest, 18 holes of golf and finishing with a delicious dinner, an awards celebration, silent auction and raffle.

"It's Finished"

With a grant received from the Community Foundation of Broward, the residents of Coral Springs, under the leadership of the Coral Springs Museum of Art, created a beautiful mural in Mullins Park.

The painting of a giant mural on the water tank in Mullins Park was as much an art project as it was a community building initiative. It was conceived this way, from the beginning.

During the second semester of 2012 and the first quarter of 2013, as part of this initiative, the Museum produced dozens of events where members of the community shared their stories and created art together. Hundreds came, met other people, and left with new friends.

A contest to choose the mural design received more than 300 entries, and the colorful image submitted by Rebecca Lowy, a senior at Douglas High School, was chosen. Rebecca's "Harmony In Our Community" design suggests a diverse group of individuals engaged in educational, artistic, and sports related activities, all of them having a joyful time together. The mural brings an instant smile to everyone's face, and it certainly is a great addition to the beauty of our city.

Six professional muralists - Al Razza, Anne Marie Goss, Hong Nham, Janet Gold, Jan Kolenda, and Lester Salazar - were in charge of transferring Rebecca's image to the wall. They outlined the entire design and went up on ladders and scaffolds to paint the upper part of the mural. The lower half, accessible from the ground, was reserved for members of the community. Almost 400 individuals signed up, and guided by the muralists, each one painted a small part of the mural. Those residents are now able to tell that they helped paint the mural, and this developed a sense of pride, ownership, and a desire to make the city more beautiful.

Overall it was very successful project. The community got involved and new relationships were established. Participants felt pride in belonging to the community, taking good care of it, and making it more beautiful. It is clear that those who took part will be inclined to participate in future community projects and, also, will be more likely to give their contribution in decisions regarding their city.

Collective art creation has proven to be a great way of building better communities.

Recognition of Sponsors

Community Foundation of Broward, Coral Springs Festival of the Arts, Advanced Cable Communications, City of Coral Springs, Life Publications, The Fresh Market, Broward County Cultural Council, Wally F. Dale, Coral Springs Public Art Committee, Williams Financial Services, Inc., Clifford Viner Family Foundation, A. Ian Fraser & Ambrose Smith, Steve & Bonnie Opler, Michael & Josephine Monas, The O'Keefe Family, Hap & Michelle Pomerantz, Community Bank of Broward, Our Town America, Robert & Lily Schor, Margaret Pashkin, Richard Aungkhine.

Special Thanks To

City of Coral Springs, City Manager Erdal Donmez and dedicated City Staff, Barbara K. O'Keefe, Wendy Wangberg~Coral Springs Historical Society, Cathlene Hammond, Jim Hickey & Ron Lubman~ Public Art Committee, Rich Michaud & Tom Constantino~Public Works Dept., Rick Engle~Parks & Rec. Dept., Donald Eckler & Doug Hammann~Eckler Engineering, Inc., Kyle Monroe~Crom Corp., Denise Collins, Yaa Davis, Nzingah Oniwosan, Coral Springs Chinese Cultural Association, Natalie Heydet & Holly Harrington~Coral Springs Quilt Guild, Task Force Members & the Coral Springs Community.

Volunteers

Taylor Daum, Marie Kaiser, Luiz Gutierrez, Debbie Friedman, Sandra Hill, Jeri Cross, Arlene Solomon, Deborah Collins, Margaret Hanrahan, Judy Remme, Korey Meckes, Veronika Barna-Revesz, Bob Stawicki, Beth Ann Carr.