Parramore Arts on the West Church Corridor

Parramore Arts is a gallery without walls to showcase free public art installations at Interstruct’s redevelopment site located at 802-816 W. Church Street in Parramore. The initiative showcases free public art as a 24/7 active use experience on the West Church Corridor and is co-curated by City of Orlando public art coordinator Pat Greene, Collab Studios founders Mariah Román and Lafayette Bradford, and Interstruct CEO Ryan Young.

NEXT at the ArtCube / Artist Opening on October 17, 2024 at 7pm

“NOTICE” by Alexis Collum

The installation transforms a Cube space into a natural landscape, featuring murals of the sun and moon in opposition, creating an eclipse behind a central Tree of Life. Life-size plant sculptures emerge from the walls, and the tree is built from storm debris, forming roots that stretch to the sky. Glow-in-the-dark paint traces mycelium networks on the floor, while string lights and a projector bring the scene to life. Visitors are invited to interact with found objects and participate in a “Take one, leave one” exchange as part of the experience.

Says Collum: “The art of noticing is at odds with today’s fast-paced society. With soft movements and sounds, NOTICE is an activation of all of the senses towards timeless storylines and moments. Duality, balance, and interwoven connection are represented in nature through cyclical patterns and forms.”

What to expect at Parramore Arts:

1. Love Seeks Unity AR Mural

The premier installation is the “Love Seeks Unity” augmented reality mural, commissioned by Interstruct from Snap! Orlando to continue the message of positivity sparked by Hudas and Co.’s original “Unity Mural.” The new AR mural is part of Snap! Orlando’s City Unseen public [AR]t project helmed by Patrick Kahn. Viewers must download the app and stand at the permanent plaque across the street from Interstruct’s HQ at 814 W. Church Street to see the mural come to life and to hear narration by its central figure, Jennifer H. Desire.

2. The ArtCube Gallery

The ArtCube is both a gallery and an installation, comprising an 8’x8’x8’ shipping container, fabricated by longtime Interstruct metal fabricator and artist Drew McGuckin. The storefront glass panel directly faces W. Church Street so passersby can stop to watch looping video by several artists projected on the back wall. Artists can takeover the interior walls and video will loop, with sound, from dusk to dawn (viewing at night is best).

Above: rendering of Interstruct’s Parramore Redevelopment include the ArtCube, as part of the company’s public art project, Parramore Arts. Below: The shipping container gallery is in transit from McGucken Custom Metal to Interstruct’s site on the West Church Corridor.

“Think Inside the Box” | Premiere Installation by Dawrby

The first installation is by Orlando artist Dawrby and launched on May 26, 2023. View the full gallery from Think Inside the Box and learn more about the ArtCube Gallery.

2nd ArtCube Installation by AJ Barbell

AJ Barbell is the second artist to takeover the ArtCube Gallery with his multi-media installation. Dreams in Dimensions opened December 21, 2023 during Downtown Arts District’s Third Thursday. Barbel transformed the ArtCube into a Parramore “Theater” that reimagines the neighborhood’s historic landmarks through storytelling and mediums including projected video-collages, paintings, audio and 3-D printed sculptures.
View the full gallery by Ramzy from opening night at the ArtCube.

Intermission v. 1.0

While the team prepares the ArtCube for its next single-artist takeover, we introduced INTERmission v. 1.0.

The inaugural INTERmission v. 1.0 featured 12 video artists, primarily from central Florida, with additional contributions from Warsaw, Mexico City, Los Angeles, Cincinnati, and Indiana. The compilation video will play on a loop, with sound, to showcase a collection of very different pieces to keep viewers engaged throughout the entire 40+-minute loop. “Each video stands out uniquely while responding to the others,” says Greene. “I have a feeling that this beautiful spectacle will stop traffic.”

See the full gallery from Intermission v 1.0’s Opening Night Reception.

“Celestial Surrealism” by Delia Miller

Miller’s installation showcased a fusion of art, technology, and community engagement. At the heart of “Celestial Surrealism” lies a blend of celestial elements and surrealist aesthetics including wire-frame and mini-sculptures, mural-sized paintings and video projection.

View the full write up and gallery.

“VIRTUOSO” by Jordan Jones

Through September 19, 2024, “Virtuoso” fine artist, Jordan Jones (also known as JJ The Artist) transforms the ArtCube Gallery into an exhibition showcasing a powerful tribute to cultural icons and Black Musicians that has inspired the artist over the years. Curated by Collab Studios in partnership with Parramore Arts.
See Opening Night Photos: June 2024
See Closing Reception Photos: September 2024

INTERmission v. 2.0

See Opening Photos from September Third Thursday Orlando , celebrating the closing of the summer exhibition “Virtuoso” by fine artist, Jordan Jones, and the opening of INTERmission v2.0, a digital art compilation showcasing works by six video artists, curated by Pat Greene.

Artists
Stefan M. – Ormond Beach
Mar Martinez – Orlando
Leah Sandler – Deland
Erica Greear – Orlando
Lee Tesche – New Smyrna Beach
Michael Salu – Berlin

3. Coming Soon to Parramore Arts: Billboard Art

Another opportunity to showcase artists’ work is on an existing billboard on Interstruct’s lot, inspired by the large-scale Corridor Project Billboard Exhibition, curated and produced by Greene to transform high visibility billboards into a public art museum throughout Central Florida. Through this lens, Young and Greene identified the billboard on Interstruct’s property as another opportunity to share artists’ work with the community as part of Parramore Arts.

Callout to Artists

Additional installations are being explored and informed by the artists to whom Greene, Román and Bradford are connected. If you have an idea to discuss, please contact them directly:

[email protected] and [email protected].

About Parramore Arts

The initiative is a collaboration between longtime Orlando and International art curator, Pat Greene, and Interstruct CEO, Ryan Young, to integrate public art into the fabric of the Parramore neighborhood, especially Interstruct’s stake within the West Church Corridor. Collab Studios’s Mariah Román and Lafayette Bradford have joined as co-curators. Collab Studios was founded by local artists, who curate public art and mural projects, creative workshops, and exhibits here in the Orlando to help make art more accessible to neighborhoods and communities without galleries or museums in-reach, especially in BIPOC communities.

Says Young, “Pat and I have had conversations for years about how we’re looking at engaging public art in Orlando neighborhoods, where art is missing in Orlando, and how we’re bringing local and community artists into that conversation.”

Bradford is excited about creating access to art in Parramore. “A lot of times in our community, we are a bit timid in terms of going to art galleries and feeling like we’re out of place. But this [Parramore Arts] is in our area, accessible and completely free. It is very important to bridging the gap to the art world.” (Learn more about Collab Studios here.)

Art has been an integral component of Interstruct’s Parramore redevelopment since purchasing the W. Church Street parcel in early 2020, a few blocks west of Exploria Stadium. To beautify the existing building while Interstruct worked through adaptive-reuse design and permitting process, Young commissioned a mural by Maureen Hudas who used the opportunity in the summer of 2020 to lead a group of artists and bring a message of hope and positivity to the community through the belief that “all love seeks unity,” resulting in the Unity Mural (click on Unity Mural to read about the background of the project and the entire creative team).

Parramore Arts works in concert with Greene’s larger vision of “The Corridor Project” to democratize art so people can make it, share it, and view it anywhere. The Corridor Project has a 10-year history of site-specific installations and performances. The Transit Interpretation Project (TRIP) was a collaboration with Lynx, SunRail and community volunteers. “Walk on By” was a pop-up surprise show produced one time locally and another time internationally. The “60 Guitar Orchestra” at the Gallery at Avalon Island was done in 2018. 

In December 2022, Greene began his new role as the City of Orlando Public Art Coordinator. Young says Greene is exactly the right person for this job. “His point of view, insights, influence and art world connections will continue to guide Orlando as a creative city that values engaging local and community artists in the bigger picture conversation of the value of public art.”

About