While searching on Yelp for vintage shops in Oakland Park, this Art Park popped up and almost…read morepassed by the small cement sign on the corner of Andrews Ave next to the Roselli Park Plaza. It was strange, since there was only one art exhibit in the grass visible only from the side roadway. A tower of multi colored hand painted squares depicting red ribbons and alot of awkward unexplainable designs. At the bottom of the exhibit was a placard advising the art was dedicated by the World Aids Museum and Educational Center called Project H.O.P.E. Not something I would recommend driving out of your way to experience.

I stumbled on this interesting little park on the way home from picking up my Yelp awards and it…read moreturns out it has quite a bit of history. The entire block that this park sits on was once owned by Lucius Kinsey. He became one of the first settlers to the area when he moved to what would become Oakland Park in 1914 with his wife Nora. Oakland park became a city in 1929 and Mr. Kinsey served on the first city council. Mr. Kinsey eventually gave the part of his property that is Art Park to Leroy and Iris Kinsey Chadwick. They built a home where they lived for the next 50 years. Leroy, or Roy as he was known was also a city councilman and he owned a construction company that built many of the homes in Oakland Park. The couples daughter Darleen was born at home on January 6, 1926 and was listed as the first baby born in the town of Floranada, the first name of Oakland Park. When Darlene grew up she became the City Clerk for 25 years. Art Park opened in November of 2013. It is open from dawn to dusk. The park is ADA accessible with sidewalks, a seating wall, open space for events, and sculptures. There are large red abstract sculptures surrounding an open space, an art wall, and a piece dedicated to the AIDS epidemic. There is free street parking. The park is small but I love history and art so I was delighted to find it. Well done Oakland Park for marking your history and bringing culture to the community.

Green Turtle and Blue Tang is another one of the beautiful public art works in…read moreLauderdale-by-the-Sea by artist Laura Fisher Huck. I have always admired this piece at the entrance to Green Turtle Plaza, the home of one of my favorite sub shops, La Spada's. Laura Huck created several pieces for Lauderdale-by-the-Sea including the Coral Reef Arch at the town entryway. Town Manager Connie Hoffman first spotted Huck's work in Nova Scotia where the works were installed in 2002. Huck specialized in outdoor painted sculptures and has developed a process where they do not weather. She ended up designing five colorful sculptures for the city with inspiration drawn from her dives with scuba instructor Rene Bobadilla. Artist Laura Fisher Huck visualized, researched, designed, and then drew the art work. It was then cut and fabricated by a structural engineer. The pieces were made out of aluminum so it would not corrode, coated with zinc oxide primer, and then hand painted with UV protecting acrylic paint. During the last step, six coats of UV protecting epoxy were also applied. Green Turtle and Blue Tang was installed in 2013 and features a green sea turtle, the largest of the hard shelled turtles. They are unique because they are herbivores with a diet consisting of sea grass and algae. Green turtles are found around the world but their numbers have declined as they have been used for their meat and eggs. They have also lost nesting habitat due to coastal development. They are listed as an endangered species. Surrounding the turtle are colorful blue tangs, a fish often seen on Florida's reefs. The blue tangs are giving the turtle a bath by eating the algae off of its shell. In 2021 Lauderdale-by-the-Sea budgeted $200,000 to restore the Laura Fisher Huck sculptures by the beach. Green Turtle and Blue Tang has never looked better. I love the intricacy of this sculpture and it's theme. It's a great reminder to protect endangered sea turtles and keep your garbage off the beach. These and other sea turtles nest on the beach a few feet away March through October.

I visited the Bonnet House to see the Zim sculptures on display through April 19, 2026…read moreThe exhibit includes over 2000 hand carved sculptures by over 100 Zimbabwe artist. There are many large sculptures throughout the gardens, they are all labeled with the name of the work, the artist and the material. There is a large market with sculptures of all sizes for sale. The exhibit is so large it is only displayed in one location per year. While we were there, there were two sculptors working on new pieces, both took the time to speak with us. Love is in the air at the Bonnet House, while we were there they were setting up for a wedding and we saw a proposal. A beautiful setting for both. They have special events throughout the year, including an orchid show and Christmas holiday wonderland. Guided and self guided house tours are available,$30-40, we opted for the grounds tour only, $15. The gardens are well shaded so even on a warm day our visit was comfortable.

A tourist trap. Paying that much to see common stuff like going to a greenhouse or a grocery store…read morefor orchids. There is a similar one in California but at least in California, it is free. I said I rather used the money to buy orchids then

As I love both art and history I really enjoy the story behind this small gallery. Three friends…read morewho wanted to start an art gallery came together but it took them 10 years to make their dream come true. In November of 2011 they discovered the historic Woman's Club of Wilton Manors building that was not being used. Robert Gross was able to organize a group of artists to refurbish and repair the building. Wilton Manors invested some money into the project and in July 2012 the result was this adorable little art venue behind City Hall. I came in to see the current exhibit, The Art of Barbie: Homage to a Global Icon. It's ongoing until April 6th. Funding was provided by the Broward County Board of County Commissioners as directed by the Broward Cultural Council. I was warmly greeted by the gallery staff. The exhibit is very small but it is free. My favorite part was a Barbie retrospective through the years and an interesting diorama that surprisingly makes you part of the art installation. If you are in the neighborhood enjoying a meal at one of the many restaurants you can easily walk over. I love how a group of artists saved a building and used it to show case the arts which never seems to get the funding it deserves.

Art Gallery 21 is located within the historically designated Woman's Club of Wilton Manors building…read morewhich is owned and operated by the City of Wilton Manors. Art Gallery 21 isn't your typical art gallery. It's nonprofit, doesn't sell anything, it's operated by a gallery manager and offers rotating exhibits of all sorts ranging from the works of internationally as well as local artists to select informational exhibits. The present informational showing is that of a Smithsonian traveling exhibit entitled "The Way We Worked" which was obtained for showing when Art Gallery 21 was selected by the Florida Humanities Council to serve as its host. I had the opportunity to view this Smithsonian exhibit and though really simple in design, it gave an in depth look not only how we used to work but how we went about doing the things we did back in the 40's, 50's and 60's. As I am well into my seventies I remember those days when we had telephone switch board operators and home deliveries by the milkman, iceman, egg man, fish monger, etc. However the one outstanding feature of Art Gallery 21 that I really like and what sets it apart from most such galleries is that it is a "neighborhood" gallery. As such, you can't help but notice the friendly neighborhood feeling both about the place and of those who serve as docents.

I always love discovering public art and this is one of my favorite pieces. Coral Reef Arch was…read morecreated by artist Laura Fisher Huck in 2013. Town Manager Connie Hoffman first spotted Huck's work in Nova Scotia where the works were installed in 2002. Huck specialized in outdoor painted sculptures and has developed a process where they do not weather. She ended up designing five colorful sculptures for the city with inspiration drawn from her dives with scuba instructor Rene Bobadilla. The largest of the sculptures created for Lauderdale-by-the-Sea is Coral Arch at the town's entryway. It stands on the town's side of the Causeway Bridge on West Commercial Blvd. You can park in the Eagle Ray shopping plaza for a closer look. Artist Laura Fisher Huck visualized, researched, designed, and then drew the art work. It was then cut and fabricated by a structural engineer. The pieces were made out of aluminum so it would not corrode, coated with zinc oxide primer, and then hand painted with UV protecting acrylic paint. During the last step, six coats of UV protecting epoxy were also applied. All of the care taken was worth it because ten years later, despite sitting in salt air, the sculpture still looks great. Coral reef Arch has several sea life animals including a loggerhead sea turtle, yellow tail snapper, queen triggerfish, the look down, and spit fin butterflyfish. All of these are native to Florida and can be found in the ocean a short distance away. I love the intricacy of this sculpture and it's theme. It's a great reminder to keep your garbage off the beach. There are even benches attached at the base so you can sit for a spell.

The Unity Beacon is public art installed at the roundabout at 13th St. and Old Dixie Hwy in 2017…read more The project was headed by H.O.M.E.S., Inc and the it was created by artists Yves Gabriel and R. Todd Schwing. The sculpture was named United Beacon because it is designed to represent the strength of this community and how the people in it support each other. The planter at the base of the sculpture represents roots and growth, the middle of the sculpture represents the obstacles the community has had to overcome, and the top represents four people hugging to show how people who are different can find common ground and come together. The sculpture lights up at night symbolizing a guide that lights the way for all of the progress that will take place in the city in the years to come. I enjoy discovering art and learning about it. I especially love the symbolism in this piece. Unity is an important idea especially during a time when our country seems so divided by race and politics. During Election Day I was ruminating on how far apart everyone seems to be in their views. Learning about this sculpture gives me hope. The message on how to make things better is in this sculpture, we need to come together and help each other. Unity is how we overcome.

Located in the middle of the roundabout at the intersection of NE 13th Street and Dixie Blvd, this…read morepretty piece of art was installed about two years ago. From their web page, "The Unity Beacon of Central City is a community inspired project to help unify and strengthen our community. A project involving the participation of local artist Todd Schwing, Yves Gabriel and members our community. Today Unity Beacon stands tall at the intersection on Ne 13 Street and Dixie Highway." I don't know that I've seen art that has its own Facebook page, https://www.facebook.com/unity.beacon/posts/d41d8cd9/1950929165165677/ [Review 13286 overall, 604 of 2020.]

Great and friendly service. We had a great experience. I totally recommend it. Excellent for…read morefamilies bonding time.

Atelier Newday is a cute lil studio in Oakland Park where you can do pottery painting…read more After searching for something different to do for my birthday, I found Atelier Newday and decided to do pottery painting with a group. We rented out the studio for two hours on a Saturday and it was really easy to coordinate and chat with the studio owner through Instagram. We were able to set up and break down 30 minutes before and after our two hour slot. The owner wasn't there for the party but she had a friend running her studio who was super helpful from beginning to end! We were able to bring in our own food and set up around the studio how we wanted to. I decided to do a bakery & floral theme and it really came to life in their quaint and colorful studio. They had so many pottery pieces to choose from! This easily took up a good amount of time so make sure to factor that in when visiting or booking for a party. Once we all picked our pieces, they had aprons and palettes set up and helped explain the colors we could choose from. From there, we started painting. I absolutely loved doing this craft at the studio and my whole party had such a great time. The price of renting the studio included the glazing and firing and each person just had to pay for their own pottery piece of their choice. I was able to pick up all the pieces within 2 weeks and we absolutely love them! A great spot to do pottery painting in the Broward area!

An art gallery in east Fort Lauderdale with a comical attitude for a high price. The gallery was…read moreenormous with an array of items with artistic charm and edgy humor. The six foot tall red sumo wrestler made of resin would be the perfect conversation piece at the entrance of a bachelor's mansion. The headless woman's torso made strictly of pennies made my head turn twice upon entry. You really have to take a peek at my pics and videos to understand exactly what I experienced after a fifteen minute walk through. The sole employee was nice and discussed prices on a few interested exhibits.

Art Fusion Galleries is located in the artsy area of Oakland Park. There is a parking lot which I…read moreimagine can fill up if the nearby shops, restaurants and breweries are busy. The gallery itself is small, but has very unique works from several artists. Art Fusion partners with the city of Oakland Park for the Oakland Park Art walk every 3 months, the next one is November 15, 2025

Fabulous! Beautiful and educational. Well worth the stroll up Commercial Boulevard. Great public…read moreart!

Thunder Blue is a 14 foot, tall rabbit sculpture, currently sitting in Justin Flippin park in…read moreWilton Manors. It is the creation of American artist Hunt Slonem who took inspirations for the sculpture from a mosaic he did on a building in West Palm Beach. Slonem is known for his paintings of butterflies, rabbits, and tropical birds. His work has been on display in more than 250 museum exhibitions including 60 permanent collections and is on display at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. Thunder Blue is covered in 6500 pieces of bright blue mosaic glass and is worth $300,000. It was first shown at the South Florida for the Palm Beach Modern + Contemporary Art Fair in 2022 and it is currently on loan from New River Fine Arts in Fort Lauderdale. As a rabbit mom, I love the subject and how it sparkles in the light. It is a very eye catching piece and Hopper approved. The sculpture is such a nice addition to the park but unfortunately not everyone thought so. On May 25th a Florida man intentionally rammed his car into the statue damaging the base. He is also responsible for destroying other art work in the city supposedly because he was angry that Mayor Justin Flippen allowed birds to be in Wilton Manors. He is currently in custody and commissioners will be meeting soon to discuss how to proceed with repairs.