nature’s design - albin polasek museum &...

On ViewFall 2014

Nature’s Design: The Art of Carolyn Cohen and Redenta Soprano Sept. 2 throughNov. 16, 2014

Cover Image:Dandelion Explosionby Redenta Soprano

The Art of John Costin

Nov. 25, 2014 through

April 12, 2015

Large Birds of Florida:

633 Osceola Ave., Winter Park, FL 32789407-647-6294 fax: 407-647-0410

www.polasek.orgHours: Tuesday-Saturday 10-4

Sunday 1-4

Admission: Adults $5, Seniors (60+) $4, Students w/ID $3

Members & Under 12 FreeOur Mission:

To promote the legacy ofinternationally known Czech-American

sculptor Albin Polasek, N.A., and toencourage study, appreciation andfurtherance of representational art.

Board of Trustees:President: Mark Terry

President Elect: Robert SharpsteinTreasurer: Michael KakosSecretary: Judith M. Duda

Paul Beckmann, Carolyn Bird, Todd Deery, Sarah E. Grafton, Douglas Nesbitt, Pam Paisley,

Virginia Poe, Lanie Shower, Susan Vernon-Devlin, Laura M. Walda

Trustees Emeritus:Betty Duda, William Carter, J. Blair Culpepper,

Jere F. Daniels, Jr., Gary Hollingsworth, John D. Haines, Randal Knight,

Donald S. Martin, Ann Polasek, Allen Trovillion

Honorary Trustee:Martha Muska

International Advisory Board:Robert W. Doubek, Jiri Klucka, Zdenek Michalek, Jiri Unruh

Staff:Debbie Komanski, Executive Director

Rachel Frisby, CuratorCarynn Jackson, Executive Assistant

Alayne Benson, Volunteer & Membership CoordinatorChristine Madrid French, Development Coordinator

Byron Walker, Facilities DirectorAmanda Concelman, Event/Rental Coordinator

Elaine Noel, BookkeepingRachel Fugate, Docent

Petra Hays, DocentDenise Lucich, Docent

Jarrod Pope, Docent

The Albin Polasek Museum & Sculpture Gardens is a 501(C)(3) public charity, nonprofit organization whose budget is funded by donations and memberships. All donations and dues go to

support its preservation, maintenance and operation. We ask for your generous support.

I love the feel of a midday jump that forms a classic cannon ball splash into refreshing Lake Osceola. And, I love the stillness that settles my spirit when viewing the golden light of dusk illuminating pine bark along its shore. OK, it has been years since I’ve made a leap like that into the lake, but that warm comforting light has followed me and blessed me for a lifetime.After fifty years as an institution on Lake Osceola, The Albin Polasek Foundation and its museum and sculpture gardens is a lot like that exuberant boy (I once was) experiencing youthful vigor. The future lies before us as clear as the horizon line on an early morning walk on New Smyrna Beach. That future is clear because of the generosity of the Winter Park community, an overwhelming and humbling experience. We have surpassed our initial goal to raise $650,000 to resettle the historic Capen-Showalter House onto our grounds, an amount never before imagined, much less raised by the Museum. It was not just our doing either. Friends of Casa Feliz, The Winter Park Historical Association, The Galloway Foundation, all of the living mayors of this wonderful city, community leaders like the unstoppable Thaddeus Seymour, Lawson Lamar and so many others have made it their purpose to aid us in our journey.We see the Polasek as a place of inspiration. Now, we are inspired by all of you. We are inspired by hundreds of new members/donors who are helping us give the Capen-Showalter House a new life and extending that helping hand through volunteerism and donation so that we can continue to offer inspirational experiences in our galleries and gardens.

If you are reading this and thinking, hmmm…I haven’t been a part of this historic effort...it’s not too late! We need your help to open the Capen-Showalter House so that new memories, great and small, can be born in a place that has been built on memories. Come on in, the water’s fine. Take the leap and make a splash with your dona-tion today.

Your friend,

Mark Terry President

It’s still hot. But hey, that’s “Fall” insunny Florida. I’ve sweltered in this heat my entire life, and the blood coursing through my veins is a remnant that has been sunbaked for five generations here. I can’t help myself. I love cypress trees and tangled Spanish moss.

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Dear Friends of the Polasek,

Calendar10/26/14 > Czech Independence Day! Sunday, 1 - 4 pm

11/23/14 > Chamber Concert Series: Ayako Yonetani at the PolasekThe first concert of the Museum’s 10th annual three-concert music series features internationally acclaimed violin/viola player Ayako Yonetani and guest instrumen-talist, Julius Klein. Held in the elegant salon of the Polasek residence, concert-goers experience acoustic perfection in an intimate setting. The performance is followed by a private reception.

Seating is limited. To reserve tickets, visit www.polasek.org or contact the Museum at 407-647-6294.

Sunday, 2 pm

12/13/14 > 10th Annual Winter Park Holiday Boat ParadeSaturday, sundown

The Polasek Museum and the Winter Park Rotary Club will host this annual festival of lights viewed from the Museum grounds on the shore of Lake Osceola. Along with watching the parade float by, the festivities include live music, family activities, face painting, and Santa! There is family fun for all. Boats will be judged at approx-imately 6:30 p.m. Admission to the Polasek Gardens for the Parade is FREE. Con-cessions provided by the Rotary Club of Winter Park. Limited onsite parking.

Exhibits> Nature's Design: The Art of Carolyn Cohen and Redenta Soprano

Sept. 2nd - Nov. 16th, 2014

A joint exhibition featuring the works of two botanical artists, which will inspire you to observe your surroundings with new eyes and to see patterns and symmetries emerging from the seemingly chaotic natural world.

Large birds of florida: the art of john costin Nov. 25th, 2014 - April 12th, 2015

Costin’s intricate artwork is a masterful combination of copperplate etching, printmaking, and hand-painting. A professional artist and a resident of Florida, Costin visually captures the individual nuances found within the diverse species of birds native to Florida. The exhibition will include Costin’s large-scale prints as well as his personal collection of rare, original Audubon prints from the late nineteenth century.

Join us for a fun FREE day at the Museum! In celebra-tion of Albin Polasek’s Czech heritage, all visitors to the Museum will be admitted free of charge on Czech Independence Day. A collection of Czechoslovaki-an objects will be on display, there will be a themed hands-on art activity, and light refreshments will be provided.

Snail Kite by John Costin

3The Museum’s mission is to enrich lives through the power of inspiration, which people experience in The Polasek’s STORY, SETTING and ART.

“With this grant, we are able to complete reno-vations to the house and garden and preserve a meaningful connection to Florida’s storied past. We give our thanks to the Orange County Cul-tural Affairs Council and the Orange County Board of Commissioners for helping us achieve this mission.” This is the first time that the Albin Polasek Museum has applied for a cultural facilities grant. When restored, the Capen-Showalter House on the Polasek Museum grounds will provide fully accessible encounters with art, architecture, and nature, and Winter Park will welcome a sparkling addition to its tradition of culture and heritage.

County Grant Helps Further Capen Project

Preservation Capen Project Wins Statewide Honor

The Florida Trust for Historic Preservation has recognized Preservation Capen, the landmark project to save, move, and restore the historic 1885 Capen-Showalter House, with an Organizational Achievement Award. This honor is shared between the Albin Polasek Museum & Sculpture Gardens, the Casa Feliz Historic Home Museum, and the Winter Park History Museum. Organiza-tional leaders Debbie Komanski, Executive Director of the Polasek Museum, Betsy Rog-ers Owens, Executive Director of Casa Feliz, Susan Skolfield, Executive Director of the Winter Park History Museum, and

Christine Madrid French, Project Director of Preservation Capen, were recognized during the 36th annual awards ceremony, held at the historic Tampa Theater in downtown Tampa, Florida. John C. Hitt, president of the University of Central Florida, praised the project in a letter to the Florida Trust, writing “I applaud this effort to conserve our architectural heritage in Florida, and I am privileged to support three of our finest local non-profits for this nomi-nation,” and called the movement to save the house a “remarkable story of public participa-tion in historic preservation.”

Pictured (from left to right) with Florida Trust for Historic Preser-vation Award: Project Director, Christine Madrid French, Exec-utive Director of the Polasek Museum, Debbie Komanski, and Exec-utive Director of the Winter Park History Museum, Susan Skolfield

The Capen-Showalter House peacefully overlooks Albin Polasek’s sculpture, Holy Family (1960) from its new home in the Museum’s Kalmanson Garden

By Christine Madrid French, Project Director, Preservation Capen

By Christine Madrid French, Project Director, Preservation Capen

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The Orange County Board of County Commissioners gave the final approval for a $114,000 Cultural Facilities Grant to the Al-bin Polasek Museum & Sculpture Gardens, as recommended by the Arts & Cultural Affairs Advisory Council in April. The grant monies will be used to fund the renovation of the 1885 Capen-Showalter House and the Kalmanson Garden which surrounds it. Exhibit areas will be incorporated in the historic home, and previously stored sculp-tures will be installed along a walking path that leads to the shore of Lake Osceola. Grant-funded construction began on June 1 and is expected to conclude early 2015. “The Polasek Museum is committed to con-serving Winter Park’s history and legacy in

A Look Inside the Capen Project

Our project to revive this gracious historic home and adapt it to 21st century use is moving ahead full steam! The house sailed over the waters of Lake Osceola in December, and Fred and Ginger (our nicknames for the two halves of the home) were finally reunited by T&T House Moving. Now, architect Steve Feller and our construction team, led by Frank Roark General Contractor, is repairing and renovating the building in preparation for a 2015 opening.

We made a few interesting historic discoveries during the project. Much of the 1885-era wood siding remains under the stucco exterior, added in the 1920s by the Showalter family. The back of the siding boards was ex-posed during the removal of a modern fireplace, reveal-ing a series of circular saw marks in each piece. The pine beams are also much heavier than you can find today, with dense tree ring circles visible on the cut ends. The original balloon-frame of the house features old-growth pine studs that measure more than 30-feet-long. (Today’s homes are built with platform framing, using shorter pieces of wood.) The trees for the larger pieces of lumber in the house probably started growing in the late 1700s!

Next steps in the project include completion of two bathrooms to meet the standards of the Americans with Disabilities Act and the installation of security and fire sprinkler systems, donated in part by ACS Fire & Security and Southern Fire Pro-tection of Orlando. Planning for the new garden and landscape is underway, led by Pam Paisley, Byron Walker, and Stephen and Kristin Pategas of Hortus Oasis with help from Process Architecture, LLC. Our design team (led by Aimee Spencer and Kelley W. Kuncis, Fine Design Partners, Inc.) is creating a stunning interior plan and selecting vintage pieces to highlight the history of the house (courtesy of Hinge Vintage Hardware), while Rachel Frisby, the Curator at the Polasek, is mapping out new exhibit areas in the building and throughout the gardens. Austin Home Restorations offered to custom-manufacture wood pedestals for our indoor sculptures, in a style that com-plements the historic building.

New studies from the National Trust for Historic Preser-vation demonstrate that re-purposing old buildings lends vitality to a neighborhood. Winter Park’s noteworthy her-itage will continue on in this landmark project. We hope that the Capen-Showalter House, together with the Polasek Museum, will be the place for the community to engage with history, the arts, and nature.

A Look Inside the Capen Project


Thank You, Capen Donors!The Polasek Museum acknowledges the support of the following individuals, corporations, foundations, and public agencies which have generously donated to the Capen-Showalter House Project.

$100,000 or more Albin Polasek FoundationGalloway FoundationOrange County $25,000 to $99,999The Anderson and Devitt FamilyJudy Duda Leslie HardyAnn & John PolasekAnonymous Mayflower Retirement Community

$10,000 to $24,999David & Gena CollisBruce DouglasHarper Family Charitable FoundationDebbie & Walt KomanskiVicki KruegerMartha MuskaPat Robertson Thaddeus & Polly SeymourSigrid Tiedtke

Richard & Nancy Bosserman Edyth Bush Charitable FoundationMichael & Aimee KakosWilliam & Rebecca ManuelKenneth & Ann MurrahMargery PabstJeffrey SchenckViginia SchenckGordon & Rosalind SiegelWelsh Charitable TrustWinter Park Art Festival

$1,000 to $4,999

Stephen FellerEleanor FisherRachel GroganSusan HoeksemaMark Holacek Janet HommelJohnny JalladRuth KazeckAllan KeenMary KelshCharles & Linda KulmannHarriett LakeTom & Julie LamarJohn LordRon & Marilyn LowryCynthia MackinnonMichael & Tomoko Malaghan Fund of the Hawai’i Community FoundationMassey Services, Inc. Alison & Jay McClellandDavid McGuffinJack & Nancy MilesBill NeidlingerMarina NiceVirginia PoeJames PughWayne & Robin RobertsEllen RobinsonJack & Peggy RogersRob & Sarah SharpsteinPamela ShowalterRobert ShowalterRoderic & Jacquelyn SwardJoe TerranovaMark TerrySteven ThagardCarol WislerCouncil & Patricia Wooten

AnonymousJess & Elizabeth BailesCarolyn BistlineGary BrewerMike CooperBlair & Diane CulpepperDonations in memory of Sara ReidDykes & Lisa EverettWilliam & Edith Fagan

$500 to $999Richard Baldwin, Jr.Dana BallingerSteven & Carol BechtelRobert & Jill BendickElizabeth BlanchardUsher BrownJoan ClaytonMike & Terry DavisAubrey DuckerCharlotte EverbachPatty & Bob GardnerChris & Danyal HollerCraig & Deirdre MacNabMargaret MoranJim & Carole MorelandLouis & Lee Anne NimkoffFred & Jean RaffaKaren Simasek & Alex SantosLaura Walda & David Meek

$100 to $499Judy AlbertsonLinda C. Allen

Stephen & Patricia AppelVince & Ruth Anne ArchElizabeth & Richard AskeyWayne & Mary BakerFrank Paul BarberHarold & Leslie BarleyBeth BarnesJim & Gail BaxterCarolyn BirdGordon Blitch & Dr. Judith MarloweElise BloomAlbert & Cheryl BogdanowitschSharon BozarthSteve BrandonElizabeth BrothersAlexander & Jennifer CalderDennis CaseyJoan Elizabeth CasonPatrick ChapinCatherine Clem Donna & Guy ColadoMargaret CollisSharon ConwayNed & Carolyn CooperJean CummingDavid CurrieJere DanielsDarrell & Jacqueline DavisWilbur & Roselyn DavisDavid DayBarbara DeeryHarriett DeLongRobert DoubekJohn and Betty DudaEvelyn EcksteinNancy EslerJose Fernandez The Finkler FamilyKarolyn Sue ForemanWilliam A. FornessSally FlynnChristine Madrid FrenchRobert FreseLouis & Marcia FreyDurbin GarrettGateway Place LLCAlana GazetskiCarole GefvertEleanor GeislerSandra GiacaloneDavid GoddardDean GrandinBarry Greenstein & Pat McDonaldGrace HagedornJohn & Ada HainesCharles & Jeanne HarrisWinni & Virgil HartsockDebra HendricksonVirginia & Gary HeplerMichele HippWilliam HobbyMaureen HolasekRon Hirsch

Tom HuberJay HughesJohn Hughes & Stephanie WoodLouis HughesDr. Linton & Beck HutchinsonHugh & Caroline JamesToni JenningsMary & Jacqueline JohnsonHenrietta KatzenJohn King & Lawrence ProssenJohn Kern & Redenta SopranoGrace KotsesSusan KresgeCharles KupferschmidtErik LarsenEd & Janet LeMastersJohn & Rita Lowndes Lawson & JoAnn LamarThomas LawtonBill & Ann LeggMeredith LevelAmy LowndesSteve MachDavid ManuchiaKip & Donna MarchmanSue MasselinkElizabeth MaupinThomas McMackenRobert Melanson & Frank HoltAllen MertzHarry & Elizabeth MoreheadLucy MorseRobin MurphyAnthony NicholsonMick Night & John PinelEric & Leigh NorberBetsy OwensPam Paisley & Glenn DunkelbergerJohn Parker Hortus Oasis, Inc.John & Jo PattersonJohn & Anne PerryCynthia PeschRosita PoseyDr. Powell & Mrs. AltonDavid & Ruth PratherRichard ProctorRoberta PuttrichVernon Quarstein & Priscilla Ann HillGene Randall & Marianne McKinneyRev. & Mrs. Eric Ravndal IIIRosalind RayThomas ReganPreston & Christine RichmondJoan E. RinaldiJoe & Nita Marie RizzoFrank & Angela RoarkSummer Rodman Therese RodriguezRalph & Barbara RogersCorrine RoyHarvey & Ginny Saltzman Kathryn Saugstad

We have made every effort to ensure the accuracy of this list at press time. If there is a mistake, please accept our sincere apologies and contact us so that we may correct it.

Thank You, Capen Donors!

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$5,000 to $9,999

Ann SaurmanJohn ScheurerPatricia SchlootStephen & Patricia SchoeneJames SchroederLisa SchroederWilliam SegalKathleen Schoen SextonSamuel SharplessJames SheppArthur ShevchenkoRegis & Susan SimasekAnn SimpsonElizabeth SimsBetty ShottonLanie ShowerCynthia SkolfieldSusan SkolfieldCharlie & Becca SloanBeth SmithBetty SpanglerSarah SprinkelMarie & Chuck StepterGregory StockFred Lyndon StoneHenry StrozeskiKiminobu SugayaDrs. Shari & Stan SujkaRichard TroutmanFlora TwachtmanMarshall & Ashley Van LandinghamHarold & Libby WardJayne & Drake WaysonJean WebberDonald WebsterSandra WilkeningDr. & Mrs. James WilliamsonMichael & Gail WinnKarin Wood up to $100


Elizabeth AllportKristie AltmanJudith ArnettElizabeth BakerJennifer BalestriJacqueline BeckerJeanette BeckmannCarol BennettRoland BlanchettAlfred & Jean BlauveltKaren & Arthur BlumenthalVan & Glenda BoganRobert & Louise BuhrmannSherri BunyeHarold G. Card, Jr. Julie CheneyCindy ChristmasColleen ClearyPhyllis CorkumAndrea CoxStacey CoxNancy CritchfieldEve Cunning

Jessica CurrenMildred DawsonTodd DeeryJames & Sharon DeRoseCarolyn & Windell DixonDavid & Diane DymondRichard and Carol EllisHenry EmersonPhil EschbachRebecca FarmerieRobert FraryEtoyia FrazierDietmar Georg & Barbara BucheleThe GFWC Crystal River Women’s ClubRobert & Judith GreenMary GreenwoodKarin GrossmanMaureen Harmon-SchaeferBonnie HarrisonThe Harrow Family Helen HickeyBarbara HovanetzChris & Deborah JepsonLamar & Jean HarmonMolly HesterCarole HinshawJohn & Martha HittMark HolmesDeborah HopkinsDonald & Sarah JaegerMilan & Ellen JamesRichard & Karen JamesDonald & Gay JungEric KleinsteuberDarren LaiJack & Janne LaneJoseph LefkowitzRobert S. Lemon, Jr. Molly & Jeffrey LindFrances MacIntyrePeggy Mann & Elizabeth Kendall John MartindaleKimberly MathisJudy & Lee MaynardRuth McDanielTom & Kathryn MillerElaine NoelNeill & Annette O’BrienStacey PanepintoRichard & Roger PaulNancy Pelser-BorowiczSusan PittmanMartin PragueJulia RankinRichard Reep & Kimberly MathisKathleen ReichJulian RenfroNancy RuddickDeborah RyanMike SchellhammerLouise SchenckAnita ShafranJohn Skolfield

Sandra SkolfieldKathleen SlesnickMichele Nezwazky SmithMarni & Sean SpenceJean SprimontMark SquiresRebecca TalbertDana ThomasLeila TrismenSara Van ArsdaleSusan Vernon-DevlinGarth Walker & Sara MobleyJeannine WalshChip WestonSandra & Richard Womble

Plannned GivingPlannned GivingHave you considered a donation of Long-Term Appreciated Securities?

what’s that?

A charitable contribution of long-term appreciated securities — i.e. stocks, bonds

and/or mutual funds that have realized significant appreciation

over time.

how it works:

With your charitable gift, The Polasek will be able to then sell your securities and use

the proceeds toward the designation of your choice.

benefits: Receive an immediate income tax deduction for the fair market value of the securities on the date of transfer, no matter what you paid

for them originally!

Pay NO capital gains tax on the transfer when the stock is sold.

The Polasek invests your gift to advance The Museum’s mission!

For More Information:

Call the Museum at 407-647-6294

Staff Updates Hello, everyone! My name is Alayne Benson, and it is my pleasure to introduce myself as the new Volunteer and Member-ship Coordinator and Researcher for the Museum! I am a longtime lover of history and museums, and my passion for both led me to study history at the University of Central Florida, where I earned a Histo-ry B.A. and am currently completing my History M.A.I first joined the Museum as Curatorial Intern and stayed on board as the weekend docent prior to my new position. I am very excited and honored for the opportunity to not only coordinate and interact with our wonderful and

Alayne BensonVolunteer and Membership

Coordinator/Research

Denise Lucich was born and raised in Cal-ifornia and worked for 27 years in the gar-ment industry as a designer, merchandiser and pattern maker. After moving to Florida, she spent 18 years working in the nonprofit sector. Denise graduated from Woodbury University in Los Angeles, California with a Bachelor of Science in Fashion Design, and also studied at the American College in Switzerland. Being of Slavic descent Denise is delighted to be working at The Albin Polasek Museum and Sculpture Gardens.

hard-working group of Museum Volun-teers, but also to use my passion for history and research to discover more about Albin Polasek and to preserve and spread his legacy. I am looking forward to doing my part to promote the Museum’s mission to encour-age the study, appreciation and furtherance of representational art, and to meeting and working with some wonderful people along the way. If you or anyone you know is in-terested in becoming a Museum Volunteer, would like to become a Museum Member, or have any interesting information on anything Albin Polasek, please e-mail me at: [email protected].

Denise LucichDocent

Thank you, Volunteers!

Kristie AltmanElizabeth BakerNicole ColquettRene EscobarCecilia Firling

Georgia LangdonHunter PayumoDerek Toohey

Stephanie Washbrum

As we enter into a new season full of exciting projects, events, concerts, and hol-iday affairs, it is important to remember those who make all of these activities possible: our volunteers. Our volunteers give us their valuable time, service, and experience. These gifts allow the Albin Polasek Museum to open each day, and their dedication allows the staff to focus on its operations. Likewise, the Museum developments and growth discussed in this newsletter are made possible by their contributions. Each day the Museum is open our volunteers warmly greet our guests, introduce them to the Museum, and help them experience Polasek’s story, setting, and art-work. They are the face of our Museum, and are integral to the realization of our mission: to promote the legacy of Albin Polasek, and to enrich lives through the power of inspiration.They are members of our community, and they help the Museum grow within and beyond the community. They interact with guests, listen to their comments and concerns, and share this information with our staff. They are our ambassadors to the pub-lic, and they take on this important role because of their passion for the Museum. Please join us in thanking our volunteers for making our Museum such a wonderful place. Without them, none of this would be possible.

Why We Love Our Volunteers

Volunteer Cecilia Firling, staff member Jarrod Pope, and Board President Mark Terry

by Alayne Benson

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Curator’s C o r n e r

Reflectingon: by Rachel Frisby

Curator

Claude Monet once said, “I perhaps owe having become a painter to flowers.” Wandering through the Polasek gardens, the site of the 2014 Winter Park Paint Out, it is clear that Monet’s simple statement makes a great deal of sense. Not only is the Polasek your source for inspiring art, but the reverse is also true; our setting inspires the art itself! This is never truer than during our annual Plein Air festival. With so much lively art being created onsite and outdoors, and so many visitors pouring into town from far-flung parts of the country, there is tangible electricity in the air! Just like the showy yellow and pink Tabebuia trees that announce spring in Central Florida, the Paint Out arrives in a bright burst of color, flowering quickly and inspiring thousands along the way. This year’s event was our most successful to date! Thank you to all our wonderful artists, staff, volunteers, pa-trons, sponsors, art purchasers, and visitors whose combined efforts helped make the 2014 Winter Park Paint Out a resounding success!!! We’d like to remind you that half of the proceeds from this event go directly to support the preservation, maintenance and operation of the nonprofit Mu-seum and gardens. We couldn’t do this without your support!

2015 Poster Winner: Steve Andrews

Highlights:2014

Steve Andrews, Walking Iris Dance


97 paintings were sold!

400 art enthusiasts attended Garden Party

Artists were chosen from all over the country

We saw a jump in the number of Art Patrons

The free painting demonstrations were a hit!

by Pam PaisleyTrustee and Garden Volunteer Coordinator

Coming Soon: Glorious Gourds watch us grow (and grow and grow) When Curator Rachel Frisby told us about the amazing Robert Konan gourd collection coming to our galleries in 2015, we just couldn’t resist the opportunity to participate in the programming by growing gourds alongside the exhibit. We are eager to share every aspect of the wondrous gourd with you, from seed to vine to dried gourd. We will be growing an assortment of gourd types, including: bottle, swan, egg, snake, caveman’s club, loofah and two mystery gourds from Mr. Konan’s seed collection. See how many types you can identify!

First, the gourds will dry on the vine until the stem turns brown, signaling their readiness to pick. When you hear the seeds inside rattle, then they are ready to paint and carve. The Glorious Gourd exhibit will inspire you to create fanciful bird houses, bowls, scoops and more. How many would you like? Many thanks to our gourd tunnel sponsors, Jennifer and Alex Calder, who were immediately enchanted by the idea of the project. Alex even drove to North Carolina to purchase the tunnel kit! Thanks also go to Alex Calder and Glenn Dunkel-berger, who carried out the construction. We are sure you, too, will be charmed by this lowly vegetable’s wonderful form.

Maturing gourds hanging from the new gourd structure in the gardens

The growing gourd tunnel

The Emily Fountain was lovingly refurbished last year and her basin was tiled after years of peeling paint. She’s more beautiful than ever. However, for the past five years, the lighting on the patio around the Emily Fountain has been out of service. The charming patio wall sconces have suffered due to age and corrosion-- the old wiring is brittle and unsafe. Volunteer Alex Calder has been evaluating the problems and researching the cost of replacing the fixtures with ones which are identical and historically accurate.

The estimated cost of the ten fixtures is $540. Wouldn’t you love to see the twinkle in Emily’s eye? Please consider making a donation to this cause. We welcome your calls of interest and generosity at 407-647-6294.

We Love Our “Garden Angel” Volunteers!

Light Up the Emily Fountain

New Garden Angels:

Lorna Ahrens Maria Cain

Barbara Gugel

WISH

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Gardening at the Polasek is for some, a couple’s activity...

These English snowbirds have been volun-teering in the garden since 2009 and have had a huge impact on the look of the garden and the merriment within. Paul tends to the bromeliads and orchids and is the foil for Jane’s keen wit. Jane tends the “English” gar-den and cracks jokes. Besides being a great gardener, Jane has the amazing and amusing skill of bursting into song at the slightest turn of a familiar phrase. It’s entirely too much fun with them around!

Jane & Paul Butler

Jennifer has been a volunteer for more than a year. Retired from her bookkeeping service, she gardens with the same attention to detail she gave her accounts. No weed, however small, is safe from her gaze, no spent bloom safe from her pruners. When told that per-fection is not required, she simply laughs! Jennifer conscripted husband Alex into garden service with the gourd tunnel proj-ect. A former project manager for Universal Studios, he knows how to get things done right in the shortest time possible. He is a whirlwind whose skill set includes all things electrical, irrigation and construction. His next project is restoration of the patio light-ing around the Emily Fountain.

Jennifer & Alex Calder

Daphne and Lincoln are our longest-running couple and each have their own special inter-ests. Members of the Tropical Fruit Club of Central Florida, their own garden is planted with dozens of fruit trees. They can be count-ed upon to bring persimmons and star fruit for our enjoyment and, in fact, planted the star fruit tree at the Polasek. Help yourself! Daphne has been called our Coleus Queen for years. One summer she propagated enough coleus to plant every bed! It was a spectacle!

Daphne & Lincoln Lai

Glenn, husband of Garden Volunteer Coor-dinator Pam Paisley, is nearing retirement. Unable to commit fully to that idea, he’s experimenting with one day a week in the garden. He’s a second set of hands for Byron, Jeff, and Alex in the garden, as well as a willing car parker and bartender at events. Thanks, Honey!

Pam Paisley & Glenn Dunkelberger

These two are a busy couple! Both have backgrounds in theater and the arts. Molly is retired; however, Jeffrey still does consulting on international projects that on occasion take him to exotic locations. Molly, ever with the gift of gab, has taught yoga, dance, and spent years at Disney in training and development and giving VIP tours. She is an all-purpose weeder, planter, deadheading person who is inspired by the beauty of the gardens at the Polasek. Jeffrey had a career at

Molly &Jeffrey Lind Disney Imagineering and Universal Studios and is skilled at all the plumbing and elec-trical things that keep our ponds work-ing. His hobby is rustic woodworking. In addition to volunteering at the Polasek, they help harvest and deliver Publix’s out-of-date baked goods to a local food pantry.

Jane and Paul Butler

Our Volunteer CouplesFun Times Two!

Albin Polasek, Eternal Moment, 1954


633 Osceola Ave. Winter Park, FL. 32789

Printing generously donated by

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Carolyn Cohen, Orchid, Paph Maudiae

Nature's Design: The Art of Carolyn Cohen and Redenta SopranoSept. 2nd - Nov. 16th, 2014

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