Previous Artwork:
Drive In Movie
Bertha Palmer
Bertha Palmer was a force to be reckoned with. While pictures of her often emphasize her socialite background in Chicago, Palmer became a rancher and land developer in her later life. After her husband Potter died in 1902, Palmer purchased 140,000 acres of land around Sarasota and became one of Florida’s first snowbirds. She is known for having introduced many innovations to Florida’s ranching, citrus, dairy and farming industries. Her willingness to take risks paid off. By the time she died in 1918, Palmer had doubled the value of her husband’s estate.
Driving around Sarasota, you are likely to come across some of Palmer’s previous land holdings and other contributions to our area. The land on which Palmer Ranch now sits was once part of Palmer’s domain. Many of the roads we traverse daily ran through Palmer’s land and were named by her, including Honore, Lockwood Ridge, Tuttle, Webber and Macintosh. And what is now Myakka River State Park was also once part of Palmer’s estate.
For more information on Palmer (with some great pictures), go to https://www.visitsarasota.com/....
Notes from the Artist:
Lori Escalera comments that "This a painting of Bertha Palmer the Sarasota Industrialist. One of the reasons I chose this painting was because it was painted by Andres ZORN of the revered ZORN pallet. I knocked it out in a day, just because it uses a very small pallet of colors. I used ochre, blue, black, green, yellow, red white. Although Zorn did use 4 colors - it is a myth that he only used four colors. You can see yellow, blue, Viridian in his work. He used up to 14 colors."
Artist
Lori Escalera
Lori Anne Escalera A native Los Angelino, Lori centered her artistic life Southern California. She has had a full career as a corporate advertising graphic designer working with aerospace, advertising, institutional and manufacturing firms. In 1981, at the age of 23, she started her own business. In 1994, Lori organized "The Culver City A.R.T. Group,” serving as its President, as well as “BCR” (environment, community, arts Nonprofit). Lori’s interests shifted away from commercial interests towards fine Art. focus revolved around the figure. Lori questions the artist's place in the continuum of art history, as well as contemporary cultural beliefs in a relationship to history and myth. Lori is a cross medium artist and exhibits her art on paper, canvas, ceramic or in the street. Her work takes on an energy and vibrancy that refreshes the spirit and enlivens the imagination.
Since 1994, Lori has enjoyed participating in many Street Painting festivals in the USA, Canada, China and Mexico, helping raise money and awareness for many causes. She is a professional and award winning Madonnari Street Painter. Lori was an inaugural “Featured Artist” at the 2007 International Sarasota Chalk Festival, and featured pavement artist in 2008 Xian China pre-Olympic festivities. In 2012, 2014 and 2015 she participated as part of an international team of artists on three projects for The Chalk Festival, designed by Kurt Wenner (two of which entered Guinness World Record Projects for the Largest Anamorphic Street Painting).
Over the years, Lori has instructed hundreds of children and adults her ideas about art history, drawing and painting, through cultural arts programming, museum classes, art camps, and private lessons. She has led the creation of several community murals in Southern California, working with community groups and the underserved. Many of these murals provide vocational training for youth allowing local residents to combat community deterioration. https://www.google.com/maps/d/...
Lori writes and speaks on Art. Her paper on Gender, Art Ideology and Neuro-aesthetics (TRAC 2015 Proceedings – published in “As It Is”); Pavement Art as Fine Art Canon (TRAC 2018 proceedings); The Occident, The Orient and The Odalisque – Reimagined (TRAC 2019 proceedings).
Education: B.A. Design Communication Cum Laude SDSU; A.A.: WLAC, Commercial Art Certification/A.A.: LATTC; Humanities Minor: DHSU
Interviews:
https://shoutoutla.com/meet-lo...
http://voyagela.com/interview/...
https://www.artmoire.art/lori-...
Video documentary about Lori:
"I am eager to return to Florida every year! Traveling for artmaking is integral to my work as an artist. Engaging with new communities is a pleasure. No matter where in the world I travel, learning about other communities enriches me. The research and preparation for the artwork excite me. My mind runs wild as I take in fascinating information about historic people and places. It makes the fabric of my own existence more textured in the process adding to the vocabulary in my visual artmaking. When I was asked to participate, after a year of COVID isolation, I was nervous. Could I do it at age 64? Could I get back in the street, muster the elements (it was over 90˚!), and do a good job? I’ve had multiple joint replacements in the past decade and I was afraid. I am grateful that the “Avenue of Art” staff helped me make extra preparations to succeed. One striking thing is of the many people who stop by to appreciate the art and share their fears about their own artmaking. There is fear of sharing our inner identity thinking that who we are is not “good” enough to find acceptance."
Written By
Nanette Crist
Nanette Crist is a retired lawyer who began blogging when she moved to Florida. It was an online diary of sorts, a way to keep track of her new life. It was also a good way to share her discoveries with friends and family outside the area. Over time, Nanette realized her writing makes her experience the world differently. She keeps an eye out for interesting things to write about and then delves more deeply into them as she crafts her words. It's all about telling the story. Nanette's blog can be found at http://nanettesnewlife.blogspot.com.
Sponsored By
The Exchange
The Exchange (formally The Women's Exchange) is dedicated to the support of Sarasota and Manatee counties' local arts community since its inception in 1962, over 260 dedicated volunteers work to ensure that the ever changing inventory is filled to the brim with such amazing finds as Baccarat crystal, Tiffany silver, Gucci handbags, fine jewelry, men's/women's clothing, high-end furniture and oriental rugs. The Exchange plays a crucial role in the community, as well as providing visitors with a quirky retail experience. Awarding more than $8.5 million dollars in grants and scholarships, we invite you to come see how "Together We Can Make a Difference."