Pat Greene is Bungalower Media’s first sponsored Resident Reporter. Greene has joined our team as our Arts and Culture Correspondent, supported by the efforts of Interstruct Design + Build, an award-winning Orlando-based design and build firm.
Upon entering the Alfond Inn (Website), you will see an iconic work by iconic artist Joseph Kosuth, called No Number 3 [warm white, large version]. It comprises white neon light that’s over eight feet wide and less than six inches high and says, “Language Must Speak for Itself.”
Walking towards the restaurant, you will see several internationally known artist’s work and there are over six hundred works in the hotel’s collection. There’s even a mobile by Tomas Saraceno hanging behind teh front desk. Having a drink in the bar area with Hank Willis Thomas (Website) work is a thrill.
When I look at their collection, I see Kara Walker, Carrie Mae Weems, Jack Whiten, Terry Winters, Francis Alys, Mel Chin, Tracey Emin, Charles Gaines, Trevor Paglen, Jenny Holzer, Isaac Julien, Alex Katz, Julie Mehretu, Vik Muniz, and Shirin Neshat, and many more. Three works by Jeffrey Gibson are included. In 2024, Gibson became the first Indigenous artist to represent the United States at the Venice Biennale (Website). It’s the best collection of contemporary art in the area.
Barbara and Theodore Alfond, who graduated from Rollins in 1968, came up with the concept. They have been patrons of many art institutions and are collectors. They work with independent curator Abigail Ross Goodman and Dr. Gisella Carbonell, the Rollins College Art Museum curator.
Dr. Carbonell will also be the interim museum director starting in December when Dr. Ena Heller embarks on a new career journey as Director of the Boca Raton Museum of Art. We will miss her. During her twelve years with Rollins, she was integral to the museum’s evolution.
I had a conversation with curator Dr. Gisella Carbonell. She mentioned that there isn’t a map showing all the work. They like the idea of the search. I have taken the elevator a few floors up to see art. I love the element of surprise.
I remember seeing a photo by 2017 MacArthur Genius Grant recipient Trevor Paglen (Website). On their website, he’s listed as an artist and geographer, but I’ve also seen him described as a photographer. The photo I remember looks unremarkable at first glance. Paglen’s genius is in its innocuous feel. I have always described his medium as information. He famously worked on facial software recognition and pointed out how the software tended to respond with stereotypes, which can lead to profiling.
The collection is a series of building blocks that tell stories of culture from the 60s to the present. Dig deep and go on some of the Alfond tours. Please check the museum’s event page HERE regularly. It provides dates and times for tours and gatherings.
We have a treasure in our community, and it’s free. See it for yourself.
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