There are two facsinating events happening in the middle of the state this weekend related to pop culture. Last night the Orange County Regional History Center's new exhibition Jim Henson's Fantastic World opened to a huge crowd. Henson, who purchased a home in Central Florida in the '80s, was a skilled artist and creative visionary and his work at the History Center reveals new insight into his imaginative world. The unveiling of this Smithsonian curated exhibition was kicked off by Henson's daughter Heather, who owns a local puppetry troupe. There is so much to see, I can't wait to go back and spend more time studying the plentiful artwork and artifacts. What I liked the most, however, was the link between storyboards for some of Hensons early commercial work in the '50s and '60s, to adjacent puppets used in the commercials and then to the final broadcast spots. Another artifact that stood out was a jazz record album Henson designed that I will be looking for now whenever I browse the record bins.The second event is the 2009 Floridiana Festival & Highwaymen Artist Show tomorrow, (Sat. Feb. 7), in Gulfport, FL. Gulfport, an early suburb of St. Pete, was originally called Disston City, after one of Florida's legendary developers. While I've seen plenty of Highwaymen work and even designed a book on the subject, I am intrigued to see what kind of Floridiana collectables will be on sale. More to follow....
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