Skyway Brings Massive Murals, Balloon Sculptures to Museum of Art

Art is at its finest when brilliant bastions of creativity collaborate. A grouping that is the artistic equivalent of The Avengers has assembled for Skyway: A Contemporary Collaboration.

The Ringling in Sarasota, Museum of Fine Arts in St. Pete, and Museum of Art in Tampa will feature works from 57 artists representing Hillsborough, Manatee, Pinellas and Sarasota County.

For the first time, three area cultural institutions collaborate 

An open call to artists went out November 1, 2016. Submissions of every medium, genre and size were allowed as were proposals for installations and performances. Works were chosen by a committee of curators from each participating institution as well as Diana Nawi, a guest juror from the Perez Art Museum Miami.

This is an opportunity to focus on and celebrate Tampa Bay-area artists in an unprecedented way. It’s important to us as curators to provide context for the diverse work being made in our region, and to allow visitors to see the breadth and depth of these artists’ practices.

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– Katherine Pill, curator of contemporary art at the MFA

Massive balloon sculpture takes shape at TMA

Eager residents have been teased with behind-the-scenes photos showing the installations in store for the Museum of Art. Ya La’Ford. a renowned muralist in Tampa Bay, can be seen working on an installation in the Museum’s atrium.

Acclaimed artist Jason Hackenwerth continues to weave balloons together to form a sculpture unlike any we’ve seen before. His Nest piece was a hit at the Atlanta Food and Wine festival. Following his premier at the Museum of Art, Hackenwerth will debut three large animal sculptures in downtown LA.

I hope that this exhibition will help to make the museum a place for dialogue, both within Tampa and across the region with our colleagues in St. Petersburg and Sarasota.

– Richard E. Perry, curator of Greek and Roman art at Tampa Museum of Art

Mural Mania camp for kids 

Skyway debuts on June 22 and will be on view through September 24. This July, to complement the new exhibition, the Museum of Art will host a Mural Mania Summer Art Camp. Students (ages 11-13) will have the opportunity to work both individually mnd cooperatively to achieve a large-scale painting.

Follow along with the Museum of Art on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter for a closer look at all the work headed to the cultural institution.

*Header image via Jason Hackenwerth on Instagram