BIG ARTS is built to last.<\/p>\n
\u201cBIG ARTS has been here for 40 years,\u201d noted Gallery Director Wilson McCray. \u201cBut about eight years ago they levelled the old buildings and, on the same footprint, built this amazing new facility.\u201d<\/p>\n
It\u2019s a multifaceted complex.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have three galleries, all of which are flooded with natural light,\u201d McCray added. \u201cWe have an amazing performing arts program, a film program as well, a Monday night film series that’s all internationally acclaimed films, and we have an educational program too with classes and workshops. So, there’s just an enormous amount of great artwork and exhibits and performing arts that take place here.\u201d<\/p>\n
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WGCU Arts Reporter Tom Hall <\/p>\n
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WGCU Arts Reporter Tom Hall <\/p>\n
Banks of large-paneled windows flood art galleries with organic light. <\/p>\n
The building weathered Hurricanes Ian, Helene and Milton largely unscathed. The outdoor sculpture garden wasn\u2019t as lucky.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt’s just coming back,\u201d McCray stated. \u201cI’ve been working for three years trying to build it back. We had a lot of damaged work and some really large pieces that took a lot to rebuild. But they’re back in place, and I have a few new acquisitions that were donated, some marble works by John Bauer.\u201d<\/p>\n
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WGCU Arts Reporter Tom Hall<\/p>\n
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WGCU Arts Reporter Tom Hall <\/p>\n
Alabama marble sculpture titled ‘Le Gymnaste,’ by Jean M.H. Bauer<\/p>\n
McCray hopes people will check out the improvements this season and is busy preparing a map that will facilitate self-guided walking tours.<\/p>\n
\u201cParticularly right now when it’s so beautiful out, it’s a really good time to come out and look at our sculpture garden,\u201d said McCray.<\/p>\n
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WGCU Arts Reporter Tom Hall <\/p>\n
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WGCU Arts Reporter Tom Hall <\/p>\n
‘Square Wave’ is a 2022 monumental sculpture by local artist Jonas Stirner.<\/p>\n
MORE INFORMATION:<\/p>\n
When he speaks about BIG ARTS\u2019 galleries, McCray beams with pride.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey’re big. They’re spacious. They’re really well lit,\u201d said McCray. \u201cAnd it’s such a really nice bucolic environment all around them.\u201d<\/p>\n
The 410-seat theater is also state-of-the-art.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt’s beautiful. The acoustics are amazing. And there isn’t a bad seat in the house,\u201d McCray said. \u201cIt’s really a great place.\u201d<\/p>\n
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WGCU Arts Reporter Tom Hall <\/p>\n
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WGCU Arts Reporter Tom Hall <\/p>\n
‘Untitled,’ by Brian Grossman, is located in the courtyard to the rear of BIG ARTS theater and galleries.<\/p>\n
McCray also took pride in BIG ARTS\u2019 response to Hurricane Ian.<\/p>\n
\u201cOur director, Lee Ellen Harder, turned BIG ARTS into a community center,\u201d McCray pointed out. \u201cFor the first four or five months, we had a community gathering once a month. It was amazing. Maybe 300 people would show up who were all literally working on their houses all day and appreciated having a place to gather. So, it was good to play that role.\u201d<\/p>\n
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WGCU Arts Reporter Tom Hall <\/p>\n
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WGCU Arts Reporter Tom Hall <\/p>\n
Wendy Klemperer’s ‘Causeway Panther’ is welded from hardened steel retrieved from the Sanibel Causeway wreckage after Hurricane Ian and stands as a testament to Sanibel’s resilience. <\/p>\n
Despite brief setbacks following Hurricanes Helene and Milton, BIG ARTS has restored virtually of all its visual, performing arts and educational programing.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve been slowly, slowly, slowly getting back to business and back to our usual programming.\u201d<\/p>\n
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WGCU Arts Reporter Tom Hall <\/p>\n
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WGCU Arts Reporter Tom Hall <\/p>\n
Steven Swenor’s ‘Dragonflies’ sculpture is located at the entrance to the BIG ARTS sculpture garden.<\/p>\n
BIG ARTS was formally known as the Barrier Island Group for the Arts.<\/p>\n
Its founding principle remains to this day: to experience and celebrate the artist in all of us and to remind us of our shared humanity. Each year BIG ARTS offers performing and fine arts, films, workshops, classes and community events.<\/p>\n
Support for WGCU\u2019s arts & culture reporting comes from the Estate of Myra Janco Daniels, the Charles M. and Joan R. Taylor Foundation, and Naomi Bloom in loving memory of her husband, Ron Wallace.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"BIG ARTS is built to last. \u201cBIG ARTS has been here for 40 years,\u201d noted Gallery Director Wilson…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":93162,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[14],"tags":[209,211,210],"class_list":{"0":"post-93161","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-cape-coral","8":"tag-cape-coral","9":"tag-cape-coral-headlines","10":"tag-cape-coral-news"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/93161","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=93161"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/93161\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/93162"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=93161"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=93161"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=93161"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}