Eau Gallie Arts District – Call for mural artists!

I want to thank the folks at Pure Ocean TV.com for allowing me to post this on their website.  The Eau Gallie Arts District asked for interested artists to send in a website address.  I am working on a Muse site, but it is far from ready. Part of the vision of Pure Ocean TV.com is to connect artists, musicians, writers, and other visionaries to their effort. They (we) would like to offer products that represent the outlook that we have as lovers of life, and the natural world.  Hopefully there is a vocational effort on the horizon. If you are interested in anything you see here, please contact Pure Ocean TV.com. We do custom and semi-mass production work. They also provide sound and video production services for all applications and occasions.

I heard about the “EGAD” call for mural artists from the Brevard Cultural Alliance. I have been working with them for years. When I worked at Devereux, they helped us organize and fund the annual “Faces Without Names” Devereux student art show. I have done several grant projects with them, including an open door mural project with volunteer teens at Melbourne square mall, mural project with advanced students at Gardendale Charter School in Merritt Island, and a mural project with Palm Bay Police Athletic league in Palm Bay. I also did the Black History Mural in the Booker T Washington Neighborhood for the Brevard neighborhood Development Coalition and the Melbourne Housing Authority, along with two cold pour bronze busts of Booker T. Washington (featured here).

I first came to the area in 1967 when my Dad was doing some sort of flying and survival training to prepare for his upcoming tour in Viet Nam. I loved the hardscrabble beach habitat, surfing and world class fishing here. I hated to leave. I swore that, one day, I would come back.

I found my way to Eau Gallie (pronounced Oh Galley) in 1978. I found a perfect old studio apartment on Pineapple that used to be swanky townhomes for well to do snowbirds back in the thirties. It had high ceilings, tall windows and excellent ambiance. I rented a mini warehouse in Indian Harbor Beach and set up shop. My first big job here was for Nelson and Karen Green at the Great Southeast Carpet Gallery who renovated the old movie theater for their showroom and warehouse. The plan was to cover the block long wall facing east with a giant mural depicting people in the neighborhood, the mailman, their dog, false windows and doors, trees, flower beds, etc. I was thrilled that I would be busy for month with such an innovative customer.

However, someone complained, and the city of Melbourne stopped me. They categorized the art as a sign and it was well over the limit. A meeting for an exception was fruitless. I was sorely disappointed that they would only allow the forklift. Time passed and the Greens outgrew thier building. They moved north of town on US-1. The asked me to do a sandblasted sign, cast resin sculpture and stucco logo for the front of their new busines location. The ht the big time and they are Flooring America,now (same location).

I find it exciting that Eau Gallie is an art district now. They are actually coming to find me to paint a mural. Would you call me a liar if I told you this was my vision for the town? All of the quaint little stores and shops are filling up with artists, specialty stores, eateries, and even a clinic. I would love to have my own shop there again. I think you could make a go of it. The merchants and leaders of the little community are doing a tremendous job of promoting the little commercial district and its classic “ Avante Garde Cracker” charm.

These folks have synergized to energize and I want to get on board. I have 10 years of experience as a vocational instructor at Devereux Viera (adolescent mental health facility). I painted miles of murals there. I was their official resident artist. They asked me to start an apprentice program and we built a premier vocational program with small engine repair, beauty salon, shop, printing, and animal care. In my classes, I did molding and casting, sign and display, set design, matting and framing, and mural apprentice. We did commercial painting as well. It was a successful effort.

These guys were no cream puffs! After a few weeks in my class, you would find them to be on task, respectful, and willing. They responded well to the discipline, training, and trust required to perform as a team on a professional level. They earned minimum wage for their effort.

We painted murals on all five residential units at Devereux. It is hard to chose favorites, but this is a good one.  I am especially proud of my apprentices who helped.

 “American Dreams Coming True” Devereux Cafeteria by Curry and apprentices.

I have been focusing on sculpture a lot lately. I have been perfecting cold pour bronze and cultured marble techniques. Here are a couple of recent sculptures. Perhaps there is room for a bas relief applique in the plans of EGAD. Maybe they will commission a free standing sculpture. It would look good in the square. Most sculpture is static. I like movement and action.

Recent Sculptures -casts available from Pure Ocean TV.com

I hope this approach will be effective in helping me nurture relationships and become more involved with the local art community. I will be over-joyed to receive one of the mural jobs. I could use the work. I believe I have paid my dues and earned the opportunity to secure a commission. It will be an honor to work with EGAD towards a successful future for us all.

Exterior and Interior Murals

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Award Winning Hand Carved Signs and Objects De-Art

Well, I ran out of room. There’s hundreds more to show, and who knows how many more to be made. I hope you enjoyed the work. My faith and lifestyle contribute to the inspiration and hard work that go into the execution of these examples. I am looking forward to watching Pure Ocean TV.com grow and hope their dream of impacting the ocean and world for the better comes to fruition. Remember, everything eventually ends up in the ocean. Please keep it clean upstream.

William D. (Chip) Curry III has been recognized as an artist in residence for Brevard County, Florida. He has executed numerous grant projects (murals, sculpture and community training) in the area.

He was a rare English major at Annapolis, until he forsook a naval career to study journalism at Coastal Carolina College. He then attended the Ringling College of Art and Design in Sarasota, Fl.

Curry has established himself as a premier sign/graphic designer, woodcarver and muralist. He helped to usher in the era of sandblasted wooden signs through his successful entries in national and international design competitions. He was actively recruited by Harris Corporation to design and fabricate large displays for venues like Kennedy Space Center, Space Museum and Paris Air Show. He was honored several times for innovation and excellence in graphics and fabrication.

Curry was a muralist and vocational instructor for Devereux Viera, Fl. (adolescent treatment center) from 1990-2001 where he executed murals at various facilities, initiated an apprentice program and helped establish and develop curriculum for their “flagship” vocational department. He has been a contributing editor for Coastal Angler Magazine since 1998 where his off-beat articles have helped him establish a reputation as a staunch conservationist and backwater sage.

Presently, he is a freelance multi-media artist, writer and musician (harmonica and midi wind instrument). While he is extremely versatile, his art is focused mainly on paintings, prints and sculpture. He also works in digital, video/sound production and animation. He is a regularly published essayist and is working on his first novel, “Prices Always Go Up Near the End of the World” (copyright 2011).