By Jamie Zimchek, Editor
A small pod of colorful ‘dolphins’ has just joined an equally vibrant bale of ‘sea turtles’ to make a splash on the streets of Panama City Beach. This parade of aquatic statues is part of SeeLife, a project designed to further beautify the streets of our fair beach town, and is many months in the making. Spearheaded by the City of Panama City Beach, the non-profit Sunshine Art Center, and the Beach Art Group, this release of 11 fiberglass sea creatures ‘into the wild’ represents the first phase in what is planned to be a much larger effort to expand the arts in Panama City Beach.
Just how do these statues go from factory to Panama City Beach Public Library lawn (or any of the other 10 destinations around the city)? A request for design applications went out some time ago, and out of over 30 applications, 11 were selected to wet their brushes. The statues themselves are fiberglass, created by a family-owned company in Nebraska that specializes in custom fiberglass fabrication. Successful applicants were sent home with their blank statues to work; though acrylic or latex paints were the norm, the final selection also included a sea turtle with an encrustation of real shells on its back.
Once the paint was dry, the statues were given several layers of a clear coat to be sure they’d survive salt air and sun for years to come. Panama City Toyota paid for a local company, Chameleon Car Works, to clear coat some of the statues. “They put three coats on it, so it will withstand our sun and weather,” explains Helen Ferrell, head of the Sunshine Art Center. In addition to Panama City Toyota, other sponsors included the City of Panama City Beach, Dr. Ronald and JoAnn Dubin, the St. Joe Community Foundation and Door to Door Services.
Mayor Mark Sheldon presided over the official unveiling on a chilly gray day last month. The sun broke through the clouds as one by one, covers came off to reveal a colorful group of sea creatures attended by their respective designers. “Our strategic planning process undertaken last summer identified there was a need to incorporate more arts projects into the community,” explains Mayor Sheldon. “A public arts project such as SeeLife fit the bill perfectly and we are excited to get these sea sculptures up around the City for our locals and visitors to enjoy. We were excited that so many groups and individuals of all ages reached out to adopt one of our 11 dolphins and sea turtles.”
Helen Ferrell has been the public face of this community project. For her, SeeLife is both about making art more accessible for the community but also serves as a fundraiser for bigger things in the arts. “Beach Art Group and Sunshine Art Center promote the arts as an economic engine for the community,” she explains. Ultimately, her goal is to have an actual arts facility that can benefit all the arts and the community. Or as Ferrell puts it, “The arts have a place on the beach and we want to give the arts a place.”
So what next? “What we’re trying to do now is get sponsors to come on board for this next round,” Ferrell explained. Each blank statue costs at least $1,500 – $2,000, so donors, and volunteers are crucial. A range of events to promote these newest PCB additions are in the works, but in the meantime, locals (and of course, local visitors) are encouraged to snap photos with the statues when they spot one, and send tagged with #PCBSeeLife to editor@pcbeach.lifemediagrp.com for a chance to have a shot included in the April Issue of this publication, or posted to PCB Life’s facebook page, www.facebook.com/MyPCBLife.
For more information, photos, and a list of participants and statue locations, follow Panama City Beach on Facebook at www.facebook.com/cityofpanamacitybeach, or visit their website, www.pcbfl.gov, and scroll down to news. Additional information is available at www.sunshineartcenter.com, or reach Helen Ferrell at beachartgroup@att.net, (850) 541-3867.
