Media Release
February 28, 2017 9:30 a.m.
The Nassau County Tourism Development Council (TDC) in Northeast Florida has selected five artists to create original public art installations to bring awareness to Amelia Island’s “Leave No Trace” beach ordinance. After receiving 21 proposals from both regional and international artists, five were selected for the exhibition: Aisling Millar McDonald; Cat Chiu Phillips; Joni Younkins-Herzog; Alan Milligan; and Richard Herzog. Each artist will create a compelling sculpture incorporating manmade and naturally occurring debris washed ashore during and following Hurricane Matthew. The finished sculptures will be installed at five beach accesses – North Beach, Main Beach, Seaside Beach, Peter’s Point, and Burney Park. Installation of the exhibit is planned for Memorial Day (May 29) and will remain for one year.
“We’re very pleased with the artists and their proposals,” said Leigh Palmer, Director of Strategic Initiatives at Amelia Island Convention and Visitors Bureau. “The artists are as varied as our visitors themselves, and a fitting representation of our dual efforts to build international travel, while preserving the quality of our shoreline.”
Nassau County’s “Leave No Trace” ordinance supports an international program that aims to reduce environmental impact by requiring personal items be removed from Amelia Island’s beaches each night. According to Palmer, the artists’ creations will give beach goers a cause for pause, drawing attention of both visitors and residents who may be unfamiliar with the existing policy.
The TDC announced the project in November 2016, putting out the call for submissions for finished, large-scale outdoor sculptures with sustaining mediums. In mid-January, a jury of members from the Island Art Association reviewed and ranked all proposals based on their creativity, durability, safety and other specifications, such as incorporation of at least 25 percent repurposed beach debris. Finalists were also reviewed by Arts and Culture Nassau, the governing committee for the City of Fernandina Beach, as well as Sculpture Walk Jacksonville’s Executive Director, Jennifer Hager-Vickory. The five selected artists have significant experience with large-scale, outdoor sculptures, with many receiving awards in internationally juried competitions.
· Jacksonville-native Aisling Millar McDonald completed a 20-foot sculpture last year for permanent installation for the Jacksonville Chamber of Commerce, as well as a seven-foot sculpture for the City of Atlantic Beach.
· Cat Chiu Phillips has created numerous outdoor, upcycled installation projects, including a large-scale outdoor sculpture entitled “Plastic Float,” as well as “Kites,” an outdoor kinetic sculpture incorporating discarded plastic grocery bags.
· Outdoor exhibitions by Joni Younkins-Herzog can be seen throughout the world, from the west coast of the United States in San Francisco to western Africa in Ghana.
· Alan Milligan, of the Poetics of Forgiveness Project, has created beachfront sculptures, including “To the People of the Sea,” a steel and sheet bronze sculpture installed on the East Strand Beach in Portrush, Northern Ireland.
· Among his many notable works, Richard Herzog currently has two in Sarasota, Florida: the 16-foot, 2,100-pound sculpture entitled “It’s all about electricity,” and “Iceberg Flotilla,” a registered and functioning watercraft built from a 22-foot pontoon and fiberglass.
For more information about the project and timeline, please visit ameliaisland.com/sculptures.