What an incredible week in Fort Lauderdale! I could write a book about my experiences down there last week, but i will try to summarize it for you. I will also be sharing pictures over the next few days as i collect them.
I started out my journey last Tuesday at Stranahan High School. I’m going to be consulting with the kids there, under the tutelage of Nancy Green, as they create a huge 3d pop art mural about Fort Lauderdale. They are also going to take the project a step further and create a huge, 3-D Dream Catcher to hang in front of the artwork. It’s an ambitious project and i was happy to meet the kids who are going to take part. More to come in future blogs!
Tuesday afternoon was incredibly humbling for me as i was presented with a Proclamation by Mayor Jack Seiler declaring December 9th to be Charles Fazzino Day in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. A symbolic gesture for sure, but one that had so much meaning for me. I practically grew up as an artist in Fort Lauderdale. My first collectors were in Fort Lauderdale and i consider it my second home. It’s a wonderful place and has been so good to me. I’m glad to be able to make a contribution back to the community at this point in my career.
The opening of my “Faces of Fort Lauderdale” exhibition on Thursday night at the Museum of Art – Fort Lauderdale was one of the proudest moments of my career. I used to drive by the Art Museum when i was just a kid, showing my works at the Las Olas Outdoor Art Festival. I used to tell myself that one day i’d have my work shown in a great museum like that. And lo and behold, here i am actually IN that same museum. Irv Lippman and his staff at the Museum have been incredible to work with and they run one of the finest museums in country. I am honored to have my work shown there.
I rounded out the week by serving as a judge for the annual Winterfest Boat Parade…another incredible moment for me. One of my career goals had always been to paint the Boat Parade and i had my first opportunity to do that as the official artist of the event in 2006 and this year, they invited me back as a judge as well as an artist! I absolutely LOVE the Winterfest Boat Parade. I hadn’t seen it in many years and it’s still as incredible as ever! Thank you to Lisa, Kathy, and Dawn!
Below are pics from the Museum opening and i hope to follow up with more from the Boat Parade later this week.
–Charles
