At the back of À La Cart’s new Art² (Art Squared) Park in downtown Orlando, the wall of the main building’s backside visualizes the city’s history. 
The portrait is a tribute to Orlando’s 150th anniversary, the mural’s artist, Justin Skipper, said in an interview. The four subjects in the mural are intended to represent Orlando in the years 1875, 1945, 1975 and 2025. 
“They were looking for art that would help celebrate,” Skipper said. “The concept is a tribute to The Beatles’ ‘Abbey Road’ album...

The Winter Park Veterinary Hospital keeps its doors open for patients who need care, and not just house pets. The hospital receives wildlife patients periodically, WPVH’s Dr. Eric Los Kamp said in an interview. “After a hurricane is always the worst time for the wildlife because they can get washed out in places they’re not supposed to nest and get trampled by families, get separated, things like that,” Los Kamp said. 
WPVH, a family-owned practice, is open daily. Its wildlife patients include...

School-organized after-school programs for the performing arts are commonly geared toward the classical arts: chorus, orchestra and band. Noticing a lack in support for modern music programs while seeing potential talents in her students, Holly Cordero paved a different outlet for young performers. 
“The stuff going on in terms of the arts being shut down and funding and grants being shut down has definitely put a little bit of a damper on most arts organizations,” Cordero said in an interview....

On walls lined with water-based washes of color, vivid watercolor paintings are taking residence in Orlando from now until Jan. 4. 
The Florida Watercolor Society has opened its 54th annual exhibition, “To Catch a Dream,” at the Orlando Museum of Art. FWS, since its founding in 1972, has grown to more than 1,000 members. 
This year’s exhibition includes 100 watercolors, each hand-selected by award-winning watercolor artist and juror Matthew Bird. 
“The amount of talent in this area is kind of mi...

A young Jason Chin’s life took a turn when he met famed children’s book author and illustrator Trina Schart Hyman (“Little Red Riding Hood,” “Saint George and the Dragon”), who frequently visited his elementary school in Lyme, New Hampshire. 
Inspired by her, Chin studied illustration at Syracuse University and later developed his love for the children’s book genre while at his post-grad job at independent bookstore Books of Wonder in Brooklyn. 
“I learned from that experience how diverse, creat...

This fall, the Orlando Museum of Art opens two exhibitions sparking curiosity and imagination. 
Explore the natural world through the works of children’s book author and illustrator Jason Chin in “Your Place in the Universe.” Chin, a 2022 Caldecott Medal winner, invites readers to dive into coral reefs, trek through redwood forests and venture into the vast universe through his imaginative illustrations. This exhibition is open from Sept. 5 to Nov. 30.  
The exhibit features original works from...

Local nonprofit Second Harvest Food Bank is calling for community involvement this Hunger Action Month.
Second Harvest will host its first “Hunger Never Sleeps” 24-hour packing event on Sept. 27. During six three-hour shifts, volunteers will assemble food boxes for local families in need. Registration to volunteer is currently open. 
Hunger Action Month is an annual awareness campaign led by Feeding America in September. Second Harvest is asking for donations of funds and nonperishable food item...