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On the town

Chihuly gallery gives a reason to celebrate

By MARY JANE PARK
Published August 21, 2005

The buzz surrounding the promise of a Dale Chihuly gallery in a new arts village on St. Petersburg's Central Avenue continued well into the evening on Tuesday, as bright and cheery as the Seattle glass artist's paint-splashed shoes.

Earlier, throngs of civic leaders and arts enthusiasts crammed into the Arts Center for a press conference announcing the plans.

Many later celebrated with Jimmy and Haia Aviram, who live in Tierra Verde.

Aviram is one of the developers of the residential/retail/arts project and a longtime friend of Chihuly's. He once lived in Seattle and helped build Chihuly's Boathouse there, and the Avirams have an extensive collection of glassworks, including Chihuly's. The larger pieces are encased in clear protective boxes, thank goodness. Given the size of the Tuesday night crowd, some poor soul might have nudged one into oblivion.

Chihuly, whose works drew record crowds to St. Petersburg's Museum of Fine Arts exhibition in 2004, was the indisputable celebrity of the evening. He and his wife, Leslie, greeted numerous guests including U.S. Rep. Katherine Harris, who said she and her husband, Sweden-born Anders Ebbeson, have an affinity for glass and own an early Chihuly work.

In addition to the profuse enthusiasm, Chihuly received a gift of appreciation: a portrait of him by pop artist Peter Max. Max also is a friend of the Avirams', who were scheduled to celebrate their 37th wedding anniversary in New York this weekend. Jimmy Aviram said they planned to have dinner with Max in New York on Saturday.

In fact, as Chihuly admired the painting, Jimmy Aviram used his cell phone to ring Max, and the two artists had a brief visit.

On hand to welcome partygoers were the Avirams' daughters Mayan and Ravit; daughter Meirav and her husband, Yaron David; and son Tal and his wife, Melissa.

Throughout the evening, congratulations went to other principals in the project, including Beth Morean, the ceramics artist and philanthropist whose pledge of more than $10-million is the lead gift toward accomplishing the development; Evelyn Craft, executive director of the Arts Center, which will be housed in the village, in new, much larger headquarters; Dick Jacobs, the Arts Center board chairman , with wife, Joan; and Marshall Rousseau, who will direct the Chihuly gallery. Architect Albert Alphonso and international developer Eyal Borowitsch also were there, as was Bill O'Neill of the Chihuly Studio in Seattle.

The festivities also included Mel and Betty Sembler, who have come home to Pinellas County from their most recent posting in Rome, where he served as U.S. ambassador to Italy, appointed by President George W. Bush. Sembler also was ambassador to Australia during the previous George Bush administration.

Sembler founded the company that bears his name; it developed BayWalk, St. Petersburg's popular entertainment and shopping center. The Sembler Co. and Aviram are partners in a new condominium tower planned for Beach Drive, and the company's other current projects include constructing the new Tangerine Plaza shopping center in Midtown.

Additional guests were Rick Baker and his wife, Joyce; Ted and Jean Wittner; Jan Sher; Fred and Barbara McCoy; Sonya and Irwin Miller; Greg and Liz Sembler; Dr. Bill and Wendy LeTorre; Lenne Nicklaus Ball; Jim Howell and Bob Devin Jones; Clint Page and Dar Webb; Evan and Diana Whittle; Fred and Barbara McCoy; Kathryn Howd; Edward Rucks; Terry and Kim Brett; Marty and Elaine Normile; Valerie Scott Knaust; John Loder; Tim Clemmons and Robin O'Dell; Cathy Swanson; Lynn Johler; Robb an d Susan Hough; Rabbi Jacob Luski; Mozelle Davis; Sheldon and Ann Wykell; and Dr. Jerry and Carol Barbosa.

Museum of Fine Arts director John Schloder wore the black shoes splattered with colorful paint drips that Chihuly gave him years ago; the two became acquainted in Alabama, where Schloder headed the Birmingham Museum of Art. He later staged Chihuly shows at the Joslyn Art Museum in Omaha, Neb., and at the Naples Museum of Art before moving to St. Petersburg.

News of the village, and Chihuly's involvement in it, is exciting for the area.

Judging from his lavish creations, one might have expected a grand statement on the part of the artist. His speech was minimalist, however. He promised "to make something very special" for the St. Petersburg collection and praised the exceptional niceness of the people with whom he is working.

The Chihulys toured the Salvador Dali Museum on Wednesday morning before returning to Seattle.

The ninth annual Social Calendar will be published in Neighborhood Times on Sept. 11.

Here's a last call for procrastinators: Please send news of your events to me at one of the addresses below, and be sure to include the sponsoring group, date, time, venue address, ticket price and a publishable phone number.

If you have sent an e-mail to me and have received no response, please let me know. The Times has a sophisticated filtering system that sometimes blocks wanted e-mails. If I have not responded to you, chances are good that I didn't get your e-mail in the first place.

Some events already have changed: The 20th annual Steak & Steak Dinner now is scheduled for Sept. 15. The event will feature keynote speaker Deloris Jordan, mother of basketball superstar Michael Jordan, who led the University of North Carolina Tar Heels to the 1982 NCAA championship, played with the U.S. teams for gold medals in the Olympic Games in 1984 and 1992 and helped the Chicago Bulls win six NBA championships. The event begins at 6:30 p.m. in the Coliseum, 535 Fourth Ave. N, St. Petersburg. Individual tickets are $100. Information: 546-1032.

Mary Jane Park can be reached at 727 893-8267; fax (727) 893-8675; e-mail park@sptimes.com P.O. Box 1121, St. Petersburg, FL 33731.

[Last modified August 21, 2005, 00:50:20]