Page 42 - 2024-2025 Travel Guide to Florida

SOUTHWEST FLORIDA
ARTS AND CULTURE
Think of Southwest Florida and images of splendid beaches immediately come to mind. However, the region has a strong tradition of arts and culture told in its architecture, galleries, museums and theaters.
In Naples, art galleries line downtown streets, where you will also find free exhibi- tions at Naples Art and lively performances at Sugden Community Theatre and Gulfshore Playhouse. Artis–Naples brings still more performance arts and is home to the Naples Philharmonic and the world- class Baker Museum of Art. Year-round,
the region hosts art shows including downtown’s prestigious Naples National Art Festival in February and the Naples Interna- tional Film Festival in October.
The Centre for the Arts at neighboring Bonita Springs offers a variety of classes for all ages in visual and performing arts. Their film center hosts another annual interna- tional film festival in May.
The art scene in Fort Myers centers around its historical downtown River District, where Art Walk takes place the first Friday of the month and Music Walk the third Friday. The nationally acclaimed Florida Rep, housed in the Historic Arcade
SARASOTA RINGLING CIRCUS MUSEUM • VISIT FLORIDA/KEVIN MCGEEVER
and Artstage Studio theaters, offer a wide variety of performances. The Sidney & Berne Davis Art Center presents a range of events including art exhibitions, concerts, and educational experiences for children. A handful of art galleries completes downtown’s artistic landscape. Watch as Alliance for the Arts turns Fort Myers’ royal palm-lined McGregor Boulevard into a pedestrian-friendly art district of its own.
Downtown Punta Gorda’s riverfront architecture recalls the boom years of the late 19th century with Victorian mansions, handsome government buildings and colorful vernacular homes. Browse the galleries of the Visual Arts Center (VAC), which hosts the Peace River National Art Festival in March.
Sarasota arguably holds the loftiest reputa- tion for the arts in these parts, stemming from the influence of the Ringling family, whose circus wintered here. The Ringlings exerted an Italianate influence on local architecture and the arts, culminating in the Ca’ d’Zan mansion on The Ringling grounds. Seeded with John Ringling’s own collection of Rubens and baroque art, the Ringling’s art museum collection covers 500 years of European art and specializes in late-medieval and Renaissance Italian works. The complex’s Asolo Repertory Theatre is located in the Florida State Center for the Performing arts.
The Florida Studio Theatre is a profes- sional, non-profit touring theater company located in Sarasota, specializing in contem- porary work. The “crown jewel” of Sarasota Bay is the Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall, designed by the Frank Lloyd Wright Founda- tion to resemble a scallop shell. It presents a broad spectrum of Broadway musicals, top national and international performers, as well as events presented by the Sarasota Orchestra and the Sarasota Ballet.
Taking up residence in a restored high school, the Ringling College of Art + Design’s Sarasota Art Museum opened in 2019. For a driving tour of other architectural gems, including examples of the vaunted Sarasota School of Architecture, download a digital map from the American Institute of Architects Florida Gulf Coast chapter at aiagulfcoast.org, or register for a group tour with Discover Sarasota Tours. Galleries fill
5 MUST-SEE ATTRACTIONS
EVERGLADES NATIONAL PARK GULF COAST VISITOR CENTER, EVERGLADES CITY
nps.gov/ever/index.htm
EDISON AND FORD WINTER ESTATES, FORT MYERS
edisonfordwinterestates.org
THE RINGLING, SARASOTA
ringling.org
J.N. “DING” DARLING NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE, SANIBEL ISLAND
fws.gov/refuge/jn_ding_darling
NAPLES BOTANICAL GARDEN
naplesgarden.org
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2024-25 TRAVEL GUIDE TO FLORIDA
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