Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Pme-eTNVH4&list=PLOQvdw7d0cd9RZZkd2lZy2hmrnJv-cfLI&index=16
Evan Snow: And welcome back to another episode of the Choose 954 podcast, episode 83. We're here with Art and Culture Center Hollywood curator Megan Kent, in beautiful Gallery Three. If you didn't know about Choose 954, my business partner, Mr. Andrew Martino, and I started a social movement to cultivate culture and community here in Broward County. We aim to keep people in the know about the great things going on to make this a better place to live, not just a better place to vacation because we live here. The point of the podcast is to connect you with interesting people like Megan, who do important things in the community. There's a lot of important stuff coming up that you're about to find out about, so without much further ado, why don't you introduce yourself and tell us a little bit about yourself at a high level?
Megan Kent: Sure. Hello everyone, and thank you for joining us today. My name is Megan Kent, and I'm the curator of exhibitions here at the Art and Culture Center. I've been here for three years now, originally from the DC area, and lived in New York for about 15 years. I came down here to be part of the Miami community. I had some projects and things that overlapped, which really drew me here. I live in the neighborhood, I have children in the neighborhood, so I'm really invested in Hollywood and in the area of South Florida.
Evan Snow: How did you get your start originally in the arts?
Megan Kent: You know, I had one teacher in art history who told me I was good at it, so I went to college and studied art history. I loved it, and then I had an internship at a nonprofit called Site Santa Fe in New Mexico, and that's what really got me into contemporary art. I loved experiential and relational art; it really flipped a switch for me, and my career path just went in that direction. I got a master's in art history in DC, and then I moved to New York, where I worked in galleries in Chelsea for about 15 years. I represented artists, managed their careers, promoted their work, and sold their work. I did that for about 15 years before starting a nonprofit called Site 95, where I did exhibitions in available spaces. I did a lot of these projects in the Miami area, New York, and DC, where I could make a lot happen with a relatively low budget. That's where my love of Miami grew. So yeah, it's a career that I am really invested in. I love working with artists, helping them on their path, promoting their work, and helping produce their work. Really, I’m focused on making exhibitions that are informative and helpful to the community and to visitors.
Evan Snow: Amen. A beautiful venue like this serves an important role in the community. Every community ideally should have an art and culture center to experience world-class works, exhibits, talks, and events. For those not familiar, could you tell us a little bit about the center?
Megan Kent: Yes, this place is really special, but a lot of people don’t know about it. It’s one of those places where artists are aware, but people living nearby might not be. We’ve been around since 1975, starting on the beach before moving into this incredible, quirky place—the KG House, built in 1924. We’re in the original part of the house, which was renovated for gallery space. In the early '60s, it was a funeral home, and the expanded gallery space was made for services. In the late '80s and early '90s, we were moved here to create this art center. The mayor at the time envisioned creating Arts Park and having the Art and Culture Center here to create an artistic space for people. We’ve been around for quite some time, and we’re really committed to the community with a lot of educational programs, theater programs, fine art programs, and exhibition opportunities for youth and students on the second floor.
Evan Snow: That’s great. We are incredibly inclusive, and I’m very proud to say we want everybody to feel like they’re a part of it. Sometimes we have big, crazy exhibitions that are welcoming and open. Last year, we had a show called Bookbound with over 80 artists, most from South Florida, and we really try to make art accessible to everybody. Upstairs, we always have projects in our community gallery where we showcase more local talent.
Evan Snow: One of my favorite events and fundraisers annually that makes art accessible to everyone is the Exposed Draw fundraiser, which I’ve gladly participated in a few times over the last couple of years. The center receives art from exhibiting artists throughout the year, and tickets are available for $375.
Megan Kent: Yes, it’s really a steal. For a few hundred dollars, you get a ticket that guarantees you a work of art. Most of the work is exceptional, so it’s a great deal. The artist's generosity benefits future exhibitions, and the opening is super fun—people love getting the pieces they’ve had their eye on. The draw component is exciting; the first person drawn gets their first choice, but even the last person leaves with something amazing.
Evan Snow: The coolest and most surprising thing is that everyone has different tastes, so everyone goes for different pieces. There’s never anything left that someone doesn’t want; there’s always something that grabs someone’s attention. The artists are well-accomplished, and it’s an incredible event.
Evan Snow: You have a phenomenal exhibition going on right now that we’re inviting the community to attend. For those unfamiliar with the Florida Biennial, could you tell us about this year’s installation?
Megan Kent: Sure. The biennial happens every two years. This year, I invited Yvonne Elver Rous, the chief curator at MOBA Jacksonville, to review over 300 entries and select 24 artists for this exhibition. The exhibition is called Installations, Portraiture, Materialism, and Magic Realism. Some artists created site-specific pieces, and we have interactive, experiential pieces that both kids and adults can engage with. For example, Dana Donati is showing her first piece from her series Personal Ecosystems here, and it’s a really beautiful, visceral work. Every artist in this show has a unique approach, and the only commonality is that they’re all based in Florida.
Evan Snow: That’s great. There are themes that come in and out as you walk through, and it’s fascinating to see all these different voices and some world-renowned Florida-based artists.
Megan Kent: Yes, some really talented and well-established artists still love to participate in the open call. It’s their way of staying engaged. Jamie Jaffe, for instance, is in this show for the second time, and her work is terrific. There are some real heavy hitters here.
Evan Snow: If you haven’t seen the exhibition yet, we have a few opportunities coming up. If you weren’t aware, we’re embarking on the fifth annual Fort Lauderdale Art and Design Week, which unites all the arts and culture institutions we love throughout Greater Fort Lauderdale and Broward County. It’s a week of art to get the public and patrons to support and engage with these institutions, organizations, and artists. We frame it as a self-guided discovery tour of the arts. None of the institutions are charged to participate, and there are artist talks, gallery openings, dinners, performances, and annual showcases. We even work with AIA Fort Lauderdale to support their architecture fair, and this year, we’ll unveil the first MOS mural in Broward County. There’s also Ignite Broward, an immersive light projection art show at the Museum of Discovery and Science and Esplanade Park in downtown Fort Lauderdale, as well as Mad Studios in Dania Beach. You can find the full series of events at ftladw.com.
Evan Snow: We’re really excited about Art Hollywood Weekend, created in collaboration with the Art and Culture Center, the Hollywood Community Redevelopment Agency, and Fort Lauderdale Art and Design Week. It includes open studio tours, artist talks, and demonstrations primarily on Saturday, January 28th, from 12 to 4 PM at various locations in Hollywood. We’ll kick things off on Friday, January 27th, from 6 to 8 PM with a kickoff reception at the Art and Culture Center, where we’ll distribute maps and information about the studios. Megan is also giving us a guided tour of the Florida Biennial Exhibition.
Megan Kent: Yes, we’re really excited about this. Some artists will be opening their doors, and for those further away, we’ve invited them to show in the community gallery upstairs and at the art school next door. We’ve expanded our spaces to bring in more community-based artists. Some of the artists in the Florida Biennial are from Hollywood, and we’ll have Arts Park involved as well. Jill Weisberg is organizing, and galleries and the Historical Society will also be participating. It’s free, so it’s a great opportunity to familiarize yourself with the Art and Culture Center and visit all these different spaces.
Evan Snow: Amen. Interesting that you mentioned the Carpenter House and the Hollywood Historical Society—there are some really interesting historical homes and architecture you’ll be able to discover. That was one of the things people loved about Fort Lauderdale Art Walk. You get to see these homes and the architecture. You might not have ever been to the MEEK, a beautiful facility on Hollywood Beach where NSU’s marine biology program operates. Local artist Alyssa Alfonso will be exhibiting there, and there will be demonstrations at Hollywood Hot Glass with Brenna Baker, who was recently on Netflix’s Blown Away. We encourage you to join us for Art Hollywood if you enjoy visiting artist studios. There are also other open studios events that week.
Evan Snow: We’ll have Zero Empty Spaces at Gulfstream Park with 19 working artist studios, the New River Artist Cooperative at the History of Fort Lauderdale Museum, and many other events. The Hollywood Art Walk happens every third Saturday, and this month it’s on January 21st. I lead free tours at 7 and 9 PM, and Jill Weisberg leads free tours of the mural project at 6 PM every month. She’ll also lead a rare public daytime tour as part of Art Hollywood Weekend on January 28th from 2 to 3 PM. This is one of the most well-regarded concentrations of murals and street art anywhere outside of Wynwood. We really encourage you to come out and find out what makes Hollywood and Greater Fort Lauderdale great.
Evan Snow: We always like to close by asking our guests why they choose the 954. So,
Megan, why do you choose the 954?
Megan Kent: I live here. I originally moved here for the job, but the community is just incredible. It’s its own wild, weird place, and I love it. Hollywood has this small-town vibe that sits between Miami and Fort Lauderdale. It’s really special. I live just north, about a mile from the beach, right on a beautiful park. It’s a great place for artists and art lovers. How many places have art walks that have been going on for over 16 years, an art and culture center that’s been around since 1975, a mural project, an arts park, and a hot glass facility? Hollywood is just a wonderful place.
Evan Snow: If you want to find out more about Hollywood, log on to floridaishollywood.org to discover more events. In closing, there are a few cool things happening during Art Week. We’re having our fundraising dinner at Regina’s Farm, an authentic Brazilian farm experience in the Sailboat Bend community of Fort Lauderdale. And the second annual My Hollywood Pride will be happening during Art Week as well. It’s more of a street and block party with events on January 28th and 29th. So much is happening in Hollywood!
Evan Snow: We appreciate you tuning in. If you have any questions, feel free to reach out to me. If they want to find you, Megan, or the center on social media?
Megan Kent: You can follow us on Instagram at Art and Culture Center. We also have a Facebook page, and the website is artandculturecenter.org. We’re just south of Arts Park, so drop in anytime. I’m sitting right in the front, and my colleague Charles is here. We can always provide any and all information about what’s happening here in Hollywood.
Evan Snow: Thank you. Come visit!
Megan Kent: Yes, please do. We’re actually going to take the camera and show you a little bit of one or two of these pieces here. You really need to get a closer look at this.
Evan Snow: Cheers. Can you tell us a little bit about Dana's work that was sitting in our backdrop here?
Megan Kent: Yes, Dana is a really intense artist, very thoughtful in the way she moves her pieces around and collects them. These are her personal ecosystems. This particular piece has a lot of connections to the ocean. There are a lot of found objects she discovered while walking on the beach, along with manufactured pieces and found pieces sourced from her home and family. Each piece tells a different story and merges into each other in different ways. For example, some items were bought online and then placed here. These are different pigments from paintings. Her process starts with a painting on the wall, and then things fall and create on the floor below her, which she then unfolds into her sculptural elements. Sometimes she'll take photographs and then have them made into these sculptures. This is actually an original painting and drawing that became a sculpture she had manufactured. Or she'll take something like a shark and then add different elements. There are a lot of googly eyes and thoughtful details in the hair's fold and curl, commenting on beauty, self-perception, and grooming. She also includes found images, like an ocean scene she tweaked, printed, and altered within the space, revealing themselves as dioramas.
Evan Snow: That’s better than the dioramas I used to make in school.
Megan Kent: Yes, we are crafting our own here because we have folders, shoeboxes, and things that kids have been using, along with wild googly eyes. This piece over here, also by Dana, is another wonderful example. You see the googly eyes, chips of paint, a compass, Scrabble pieces—all different elements from her home, including a tchotchke from her mother. Again, these are pieces that have been manufactured from her own designs. She did a residency in India and had these creatures reconfigured into these absolutely glorious embroideries.
Evan Snow: Wow, impressive.
Megan Kent: I also wanted to make sure you saw our Gallery One space, which is our main gallery. With the biennial, we have a lot of wild, wonderful, magical, and interesting pieces on view. I’m in love with this Bella Kardon piece; it’s the first time she’s doing sculptural work, dealing a lot with body dysmorphia. There’s a nice parallel between this piece and Jeanne Jaffe’s piece in the way you look at sculpture and form. Jeanne’s piece is from her Allison Dystopia series, featuring this incredible caterpillar forming into a butterfly. Surrounding it, we have other wild, wonderful works. Evelyn Pulitzer, Carrie Tribe did a really nice installation here, working late into the night. Her work deals with objects we covet and collect, creating a personal and domestic vibe specifically for this space.
Evan Snow: Very cool. And one last thing I noticed right behind you—the recently installed art tags with your technology partner for Art Week, Art Matcher. This is a cool new way to learn more about works when you’re at a gallery, museum, or culture center like this. You can just tap your phone to it with that NFC technology to find out more about the work and discover new artists. You can swipe on it to save information as one of your favorite pieces, or hold onto it if you don’t have time to read the text and check it out later. It’s a really cool new way of looking at art.
Megan Kent: Yes, you can flip into it and have conversations with the Art and Culture Center. It’s a great, innovative way of interacting with the art.
Evan Snow: One last shoutout to a friend of Choose 954, Gala Ramadan, one of the most talented color pencil artists. We’re very excited to see him exhibiting here, along with other great artists. We definitely encourage you all to check it out. Megan, thank you very much for your time, and we’ll see you guys in North Hollywood.
Megan Kent: Thank you.
Evan Snow: Cheers.
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