BROWARD COUNTY – The Broward Cultural Division’s Public Art & Design Program announces the addition of two new public artworks at Port Everglades: a dramatic outdoor sculpture by New York-based, internationally renowned sculptor Alice Aycock and an indoor mural combining colorful elements of street art and contemporary design by acclaimed Tampa/St. Petersburg, FL-based artist Leon Bedore also known as “Tes One”
“The artworks were commissioned by the Cultural Division in collaboration with the Port and are part of Broward County’s robust public art program,” said Phillip Dunlap, director of Broward Cultural Division. “They underscore our continuing commitment to bringing high quality art to the public, which includes the nearly four million Port visitors who cruise annually.”
Port Everglades Acting Chief Executive and Director Glenn Wilshire stated, “Port Everglades uses its industrial landscape as a public art palette for artists to create visually stimulating works that engage cruise guests, and, in some cases, can serve a practical purpose such as an artistic landmark which helps visitors navigate through the Port.”
Alice Aycock’s hybrid of architecture and sculpture titled, Exuberance, is located in a traffic circle between four of the Port’s cruise terminals. It is a dynamic three-dimensional interpretation of waves, water, wind, and vortexes of energy. Fabricated from powder-coated aluminum, its color gradation from white to blue presents a strong visual contrast to the neutral color palette of the surrounding buildings and plaza. The artist stated, “Within the context of the Port, Exuberance, sets up a visual dialogue with the exciting industrial backdrop of the site as well as the sculptural forms of the massive ships as they come and go.” Further, she is hopeful that “the viewer will make the aesthetic connection between the work of art and the surrounding environment."
Invigorating the newly expanded and renovated Cruise Terminal 25 is Leon Bedore’s 75-foot long mural titled Transcendence. With a combination of unexpected bursts of saturated color reminiscent of street art and its highly tailored swipes and sharply formed shapes, the mural complements the terminal’s sleek interior and makes travelers aware they are entering a new and exhilarating experience and exciting journey ahead. The artist stated, “When I first took a tour of the space, the area leading to the VIP Lounge was so unique. It felt like a portal not only between land and sea, but of a completely new experience. I hope it [the artwork] provides a memorable entrance to this unique and rare adventure.”
Learn more about Broward County’s Public Art & Design Program.
About Broward's Cultural Division
This artwork was commissioned through the Cultural Division’s Public Art & Design program. Broward Cultural Division is the County’s local arts agency, which provides financial, technical and marketing assistance to artists and arts organizations. For more about the Cultural Division and its services, follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram or visit Broward.org/Arts.
About Broward's Port Everglades
As one of Florida’s leading economic powerhouses, Port Everglades is consistently ranked among the top three busiest cruise ports in the world, one of the nation’s leading container ports, and South Florida’s main seaport for receiving petroleum products. The Port Everglades Department is a self-supporting Enterprise Fund of Broward County government with operating revenues of almost $168 million in Fiscal Year 2018. It does not rely on local tax dollars for operations. The total value of all economic activity is more than $30 billion. More than 230,000 Florida jobs are impacted by the Port, including over 13,000 people who work for companies that provide direct services to Port Everglades. Port Everglades boasts more cruise lines, more sailings and more itineraries than any other port in the world. In 2018 Port Everglades hosted 3.8 million cruise passengers, the cruise industry’s economic impact was $2 billion in business activity, $67 million in state and local taxes, 5,821 direct jobs, $172.8 million in local wages and $180.3 million in local purchases. View details on the latest cruise offerings at porteverglades.net or contact the Port at PortEverglades@broward.org.
DATE: October 24, 2019
MEDIA CONTACT: Meredith Clements
Marketing, Broward Cultural Division
PHONE: 954-357-7463
EMAIL: mclements@broward.org