Pinellas To Offer 1st-Of-Its-Kind Traveling Art Project

OLDSMAR, FL — Pinellas County is celebrating the kickoff of a first-of-its-kind traveling art project Saturday, March 14.

Creative Pinellas will launch will host the grand opening of SPACEcraft, a traveling art project that shares hands-on art experiences inside two converted cargo shipping containers.

The grand opening will take place at Oldsmar City Hall, 100 State St., in the east parking lot. There will be a ribbon-cutting from 10 to 10:30 a.m. and programming and activities until 2 p.m.

Those attending will have a chance to meet the artists behind the mission -- Carrie Boucher, Bridget Elmer and Mitzi Gordon.

The modular creative spaces will feature both instructor-led and self-guided activities on the themes of Make, Play, Read, and Grow. Visitors will be invited to interact and create together at each site SPACEcraft visits.

Funded by the Pinellas County Board of County Commissioners and Patreon, the project is scheduled to travel throughout the county over the course of two years, moving to a new location every eight weeks. The containers will travel separately, opening several times a week to offer participant-driven programming guided by artists, musicians, writers, performers, educators and other creative people in the community.

The grand opening in Oldsmar will include making a magnetic poetry wall, a free library, a drum circle and seed planting, as well as performances by Three Happy Ukers, a ukulele trio, and Oldsmar’s Poet Laureate Amanda Butler.

Other activities planned include:

Make: Maker space/art studio featuring art workshops, crafting, mending, art installations, exhibitions, tool and equipment demos.

Play: Interactive playroom and stage to share musical performances, plays, drum circles, board games, movie screenings, playground games, building and educational toys.

Read: Reading room presenting poetry and short story readings, storytelling, a free-exchange library, writing workshops, zine making.

Grow: Personal and community growth space offering yoga, meditation, fitness, gardening, nutrition, tutoring and personal wellness.

Interactive elements on the outside of each container will include a modular magnet mural, an interactive LEGO block play wall, a large-scale magnetic poetry custom to each location and a living wall of Florida native plants

SPACEart will be at Oldsmar City Hall from March 14 to April 22. Residents can visit SPACEcraft any time during Oldsmar City Hall hours, Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Programmed activities will take place:

• Mondays, 11 a.m.
• Wednesdays, 6 p.m.
• Saturdays, 10 a.m.
• Saturdays, 1 p.m.

Future deployments include:

• John Chesnut Sr. Park, 2200 E. Lake Road, S, Palm Harbor
• Palm Harbor Library, 2330 Nebraska Ave., Palm Harbor
• Eagle Lake Park, 1800 Keene Road, Largo
• Lake Seminole Park, 10015 Park Blvd. N., Seminole
• Lealman Neighborhood Park, 3890 55th Ave. N., St. Petersburg.