Creativity all over town: Art in Public Places

British art writer Jonathan Jones once wrote, “Art is language and public art is public speech.” Arts have a history of bringing people together, increasing understandings across disparate and historically unequal groups, and supporting the agency of underrepresented communities to create, maintain and share their own stories.

That’s exactly what Osceola Arts has been bringing to Kissimmee over the years. Recent years brought ARTisNOW public murals across Kissimmee. Don Rimx recently finished the latest piece, “Energy Flow,” at Valencia College.

“Participation in creative cultural activities helps connect people to each other and the community,” said Osceola Arts Visual Arts Director Marilyn Cortes-Lovato, “It creates opportunities for community dialogue, creative community building, shared cultural experiences, and can improve economic development.”

Now with the mural series currently wrapped up, Osceola Arts offers Art in Public Places. It is a brilliant program for local artist to display they work for the community to see.

“Osceola Arts, Kissimmee City Hall, and the Osceola County Library System are proud to present the ‘Art in Public Places’ program,” Cortes-Lovato said. “This program showcases original artwork by Florida artists, providing artistic and cultural displays to engage the community and enrich the Library and City of Kissimmee experience.”

These pieces can be found at Kissimmee City Hall, Hart Memorial Library, Buenaventura Lakes Library, West Osceola Library and Veteran’s Memorial St. Cloud Library. The time and soul put into each of these pieces, as well as, now having them display throughout Kissimmee can help foster a healthy community through creativity.

The mission of Osceola Arts is to promote, cultivate and foster interest and participation in the arts by providing affordable and accessible programs and facilities that encourage artistic expression in the diverse community they serve.