PANAMA CITY – The long term is bright and colorful for Panama City as the city continues to grow into a bustling destination.
Even before Hurricane Michael, Panama City lacked an art scene, but it’s becoming his vision to install the first city in the Panhandle. Now, there’s fun around every corner, as the entertainment industry offers weekly events, adding visual arts shows. , musical performances, festivals and comedy nights.
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Jayson Kretzer, executive director of the Bay Arts Alliance, said the arts scene is bigger than ever and new local skills projects are underway in Bay County.
“The arts network was going in the right direction before the hurricane, but the typhoon displaced many of our local artists and the scene had to stop,” Kretzer said. “Despite the devastation of Hurricane Michael, it has allowed us to recreate the city we live in through creativity. “
Since the hurricane, the city has experienced some of the most colorful facets of art through festivals, music, and other talent. New events such as the Fluxe Festival, Bay Pride and Discover Asia have emerged as part of the revitalization of the city. In addition, more and more downtown sites are beginning to reappear after being rebuilt after the storm.
“I feel like we’re finding new creatives every day who want to contribute to the quality of life in our network paintings and the key to bay Arts Alliance is to work with each and every organization in the city to help spread that awareness. Kretzer said. Looking to the future, I see Panama City more than an art district, but at the same time at the height of a city of art. “
With more creativity added to the visual arts scene, there is so much to see in almost every corner of Panama City. From wrapped flow boxes to tree sculptures, a municipal branch is making the continuous addition of art a more sensible priority.
Sean DePalma, director of the city’s quality of life branch, said the organization strives to contribute to Bay County’s art scene. Over the past two years, the branch has covered 18 vinyl signage boxes, introduced a banner program for young people in the city and created tree sculptures in Oaks through Bay Park on St. Andrews.
“We have a vision for the city to showcase our art through public and personal art,” DePalma said. “We need to move forward by making sure our city is known for so many positive things, and that includes Panama City as an art. “Mecca. “
DePalma said he sees a positive long term towards where Panama City is headed and promised that the quality of life branch will continue to help build the community’s art scene. He hopes his branch can bring art to crosswalks and intersections over the next year. as well as climbing at least 12 more traffic frames that surround the city.
“As we rebuild our city after Hurricane Michael, there’s a lot to see in the coming years, and it’s not just about the visual arts, but also other media in the entertainment scene,” DePalma said. “We need to put art everywhere,” so anywhere in the city, you have the opportunity to see colors and patterns, even in the most sophisticated places. “
In late June, two old friends embarked on a project to repair an old fresco in central Panama. Painters Logan Flint and Skip Bondur brought back to life a Coca-Cola mural painted in the 1950s at the corner of Fourth Street and Harrison Avenue.
The painting was located on what was once the site of a Texaco fuel station and is now part of tom’s Hot Dogs building. In addition, Flint and Bondur have completed several projects in Panama City, adding an artwork at History Class Brewing Company in central Panama. , Los Rancheros on Calle 23 and Pollos Delgados on Calle 23.
Flint said it was important for him to be involved in the recovery of the Coca-Cola mural because it contained valuable family memories.
“This is the parking lot where my grandparents met, so it’s special for me to be able to put my brush on the wall,” Flint said. “We never like to call it portrait because it’s just portraying what we like to do. laugh to be part of a developing netportrays and help give a contribution to it.
Flint and Bondur painted during the coolest hours of the day and discovered the joy of running on the mural.
“It creates wonderful chaos because we had to take the sun into account,” Bondur said. “The exciting component of this task is that we were able to take a piece created almost 70 years ago and make it look like it was painted. “last week. “
A rite of inauguration held on July 20 to unveil the finished product of the last mural in the center of the city.
Heather Clements said she has sought to be an artist for as long as she can remember. Fifteen years ago, the Virginia resident moved to Panama City, pursuing her hobby and developing an immense love for mural painting. Clements has contributed to many projects in the city, adding the “Welcome Wall” throughout the construction of the Ocean Oriental Market and a 100-foot mural along the construction of Aaron Rich Marketing.
“There’s something about creating art that’s outdoors and for the audience that’s a game-changer for me,” Clements said. “In fact, art is for everyone, it enriches our lives and brings useful meaning. “
“Essential Growth, his first mural in the region, painted in the spring of 2021, on the Welcome Wall. Clements said the play was created as a reaction to the pandemic as the network grew due to the difficulties it faced.
Clements finished his mural for now, “Still We Rise,” in February in the Aaron Rich Marketing building, reflecting the community’s adventure of rebuilding again after Hurricane Michael.
“In addition to being so passionate about art, hearing from netpaintings the meaning my paintings bring to their lives is what I can expect as an artist,” she said. “It reminds me that what I do has a purpose. “
Seven other muralists contributed to Panama City’s welcome wall, sharing the construction of the Ocean Oriental Market at the corner of Sixth Street and Harrison Avenue.
The wall of art paintings ended last summer and features the paintings of 8 local artists: Clements, Kretzer, Christon Anderson, Joyful Enriquez, Olga Guy, Christence Taylor, Heather Parker and Paul Brent.
As art scenes continue to grow in Bay County, the network can look to a hopeful future.
“My vision is that Panama City will continue to evolve with arts and entertainment and will not only be a city that creatives will need but also where they will have to live,” Kretzer said.
To learn more about how to make a contribution to a work of art in Bay County, stop at bayarts. org.