from the desk of pat greene
A Recent Journey to a Different Time by Patrick Greene
The smell of orange blossoms is a strong part of my childhood memory . There were several acres of orange groves next to my junior high school . Kids used to smoke cigarettes , pot , get intimate , etcetera in the grove . There is no way that I can convey the smell of the orange blossoms , but I really miss them . Most of the orange groves have disappeared because of development or freezes . Earlier this week , I decided to take a circuitous route to Fort Myers . I drove from Orlando to Clermont , and mostly took Highway 27 south towards Everglades City . We weaved onto some county roads and eventually to Highway 29 . Much of that area is a part of what is known as the Lake Wales Ridge . It ’ s a sand ridge that has some of the highest elevations in Florida . The highest points are a little over 300 feet . The highest point in Florida is 345 feet . It ’ s in the Panhandle .
It ’ s no accident that the ridge is also the location of three towers that were designed as tourist vantage points . The tower trinity are the Florida Citrus Tower , Bok Tower , and the Lake Placid Tower . You can still ride an elevator to the top of the Clermont Tower . It used
11 to be the best place to see acre upon acre of orange groves . Now you see a lot of development . Bok Tower is still a very busy place . It ’ s surrounded by a beautiful landscape . Legendary landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted designed the grounds . He is mostly known for projects like Central Park , and San Francisco ’ s Golden Gate Park . The last tower on the ride is the Lake Placid Tower . It ’ s situated in a parking lot that I am guessing is usually empty these days . The Lake Placid Tower is also the most recent of the trinity . It was built in 1960 . The Citrus was built in 1956 . Bok is the most ambitious and thoughtful . It was also the fi rst . It was built from 1927-29 . The two youngest were put in place to be tourist traps . Bok was designed to bring tourists in , too , but bringing in someone of Olmsted ’ s caliber makes it apparent that this was a much more serious project .
I forgot to mention the journey to Fort Meyers was to see a show at the Bob Rauschenberg Gallery . I went to see Kalup Linzy ’ s collaboration with James Franco . A couple months ago , I met Kalup at the ARTBORNE release party at Lil Indies . He told me about the project and the show . I was reading through Halee Sommer ’ s interview / review in last month ’ s ARTBORNE . Kalup had mentioned that he likes to keep his work accessible . My favorite contemporary artwork is usually accessible , at least superfi cially , but there are layers that go deeper .
The woman who greeted us in the gallery was dressed like a security guard , but she explained the show as if she doubled as a docent . It was apparent that she is fond of Kalup and the show . She explained that Kalup had become friends with James Franco , and they decided to collaborate . Kalup grew up watching soap operas , and he was born in Clermont , Florida ( home of the Citrus Tower ), and raised in nearby Stuckey .
The show starts with a wall that shows a fake family tree that is a part of the framework for the soap opera . There were video segments that showed Franco and Kalup playing different roles , and different genders . The videos are entertaining , absurd , melodramatic , and banal . There is an awkward fl uidity going on as the actors play the different roles , and
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