Discounts for SunFest tickets? Yes, please!

SunFest’s opening night is so close that, if you listen closely, you can almost hear the crowd roar as fans wait for Flo Rida to take the stage. If you missed earlier opportunities for discounted tickets to the big music festival coming to the downtown West Palm Beach waterfront from May 5 to 7, there’s another chance to save.

The Cultural Council for Palm Beach County is bringing back its MOSAIC (Month of Shows, Art, Ideas and Culture) promotion throughout May, offering discounts and deals at entertainment venues, museums, art centers, theaters, gardens and animal encounters.
“May is a shoulder season in The Palm Beaches, as the traditional season starts to wind down,” said Lauren Perry, the council’s director of marketing and cultural tourism, adding that a goal is to help “organizations maintain their visitation numbers for one more month before the slower summer months.”

Spanning 25 organizations from Boca Raton to Jupiter, MOSAIC’s sixth year offers 27 ways to spend less on a variety of experiences, including:

• Up to 30% off SunFest tickets online through May 4
• $10 off performances at the Arts Garage in Delray Beach
• 23% off tickets for a Hakuna Matata catamaran cruise
• 20% off tickets to “Legally Blonde” at the Kravis Center for the Performing Arts in West Palm Beach
• Buy-One-Get-One (BOGO) free admission to the Boca Raton Museum of Art and Jupiter Inlet Lighthouse & Museum

For a full list of offers and how to redeem them, visit palmbeachculture.com/mosaic.

Some deals to discover

• Cox Science Center and Aquarium, 4801 Dreher Trail N., West Palm Beach, is offering a free child’s admission with paid adult ticket available at the entrance throughout the month. “As a cultural institution here in Palm Beach County, the Cox Science Center finds it important to join in partnership with our fellow attractions and institutions to highlight the one-of-a-kind tapestry of art, ideas and culture that makes this area stand out,” said the center’s chief operating officer, Carla Duhaney. “Being a part of MOSAIC is a wonderful opportunity to highlight what we have to offer for families as summer begins.” Visit coxsciencecenter.org.

• Mary Csar, executive director of The Schmidt Boca Raton History Museum, said MOSAIC helps promote its informative public programs, along with permanent and rotating temporary exhibits, to the community. “We hope to attract local families and visitors to experience our fascinating, hands-on museum, maybe for their first time, and the special $2-off admission is an added bonus,” she said. Redeem that deal in person throughout May at The Schmidt, which is headquartered in Boca Raton’s Historic Town Hall at 71 N. Federal Highway. Visit bocahistory.org.

• As the school year nears its end, Resource Depot, the Palm Beach County nonprofit that works to keep reusable items out of landfills, has two MOSAIC promotions. Parents can pick up materials for summer craft projects at a discount, filling two bins’ worth for the price of one. Shoppers can also save 25% off any item purchased from their resale shop, called the TreasuRE Boutique. “As a longtime partner of the Cultural Council, we’re thrilled to once again participate in MOSAIC,” said Andrea Trainor, Resource Depot’s director of retail operations. “The timing and deals are perfect for those last-minute teacher appreciation and Mother’s Day gifts.” Resource Depot is at 2508 Florida Ave., West Palm Beach. Visit resourcedepot.org.

• Step into Mounts Botanical Garden to explore its 25 display gardens containing more than 7,000 species of tropical and subtropical plants with Buy-One-Get-One half-off admission during May. “As Palm Beach County’s oldest and largest botanical garden, Mounts is always happy to partner with the Cultural Council for Palm Beach County to promote and present a vast array of incredible cultural experiences — and we welcome any opportunity to bring visitors, both new and returning, to our 20-acre tropical paradise just minutes from the hubbub of downtown West Palm Beach,” said Rochelle Wolberg, Mounts Botanical Garden’s curator/director. Mounts is at 531 N. Military Trail, West Palm Beach. Visit mounts.org.

Palm Beach County Open Studios

A new initiative has been added to the MOSAIC lineup this year, as a way to get visitors into artists’ workspaces and studios to see the creative process in action. Sponsored by Zero Empty Spaces, which creates affordable artist studios in vacant storefronts, and public radio station WLRN, Palm Beach County Open Studios will take place from noon to 5 p.m. May 20. The lineup features 65 artists at locations throughout the county with free demonstrations ranging from painting to glass blowing, photography, jewelry making, sculpture and printmaking, among others.

“Engaging with an artist to learn about what inspires them and their creative process is a great way to understand the final piece and connect with it,” said Perry, the council’s director of marketing and cultural tourism. “This type of interaction allows you to appreciate the work they’ve done from a perspective of how much time it took, why they chose certain materials, colors, media, etc.

“It’s also educational for those looking to collect art, or for those who might just be learning about art collecting. Not to mention a great way for aspiring artists to learn from those who make a living from it.”

Visitors will have the opportunity to purchase art directly from the artists. Check out the guide at bit.ly/3NdCE9g to plan your day.

Some studios to visit

Rolando Chang Barrero, owner of The Box Gallery in West Palm Beach, will open his doors to visitors, also giving them a rare peek into his private workspace there.

“Since I try to keep The Box Gallery separate from my art studio, few people have ever seen my actual art studio, which is located in the back part of the location [at 811 Belvedere Road],” he said. “I look forward to drawing back the curtains and showing people where the magic happens. Of course, I’ll need to tidy it up a bit by May 20 because I’ve been working on a few larger paintings and it’s a bit messy.”

Barrero, a member of the Cultural Council for Palm Beach County, has invited some artists who work from home to join him for the event.

“I want to give the public an opportunity to meet them as well,” he said. “I think the public will be captivated with the work of Bruce Helander, Purvis Young, Pavel Ouporov, Domenic Esposito and other very highly acclaimed artists represented at The Box Gallery.

“I will also have a few of my paintings, sculptures and ephemera from my installations on view and available.”

In the heart of downtown Lake Worth Beach, the Flamingo Clay Studio is a a small, nonprofit collective of working artists that also puts on weekend art festivals. It has been a member of the Cultural Council, which also is based in the city, as an arts organization since 2005.
Joyce Brown, director of Flamingo Clay Studio, said visitors will see artists at work and have the opportunity to speak with them.

“We will also be giving visitors a small bag of clay. They can take it home with them, create their own work of art, and bring it back to us so that we can fire it for them,” she said. “We hope that, as every child and adult learns when they pick up a bag of clay, a paintbrush, a chisel or whatever they use to create their works of art, that there is no such thing as a mistake in art. The effort and pleasure gained is the true gift.”

The studio, at 15 S. J St., also works with teens, providing them free art lessons in exchange for their commitment to community service.
“Artists, musicians, poets, dancers are the folks who bring beauty and color to life. Without us, the world would be a truly drab place,” Brown said. “By meeting with, and regularly supporting artists and the arts, patrons help create the space that makes towns and neighborhoods better places in which to live.”

Find a pin scavenger hunt

This year, MOSAIC visitors can collect six commemorative lapel pins, each being a letter that spells out MOSAIC. The Cultural Council has distributed each letter to participating attractions around the county in May, Perry said.

“This was inspired by a popular collectible pin program at one of Florida’s largest tourist attractions, and we hope MOSAIC visitors enjoy finding all six,” she said. “When you find your first letter, ask to see their clue sheet so you can complete the set.”