Event in Thorpe Park on Pineapple Avenue to begin at 7:30 p.m.
At 7:30 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 13, within Paul N. Thorpe Jr. Park in downtown Sarasota, leaders of the City of Sarasota will commemorate the inclusion of the “Mermaid Fountain” in the Smithsonian Institution’s collection of public art sculpture.
The fountain, which was created by Nancy Goodheart Matthews, formally is titled L’Aria della Figlia Muta, a city news release notes. City residents have called it the signature feature of Paul N. Thorpe Jr. Park, which stands at 135 S. Pineapple Ave.
The Sept. 13 celebration will include remarks from “Matthews, city officials, and arts community leaders,” the release adds.
In its documentation, the Smithsonian points out that the fountain “was retitled in 2005. The English translation of the sculpture’s Italian title is ‘Song of the Silent Daughter.’ The sculpture was funded as a public art project by the city of Sarasota,” the Smithsonian document adds.
“The beloved fountain has been a downtown Sarasota landmark since 1993,” the city news release notes. That is the year when Matthews “meticulously built and installed this elaborate, large-scale work,” the release continues.
In its documentation, the Smithsonian says that the fountain was dedicated on Dec. 9, 1993. Overall, the document continues, the structure measures 10 feet, 8 inches by 34 feet by 46 feet, 4 inches. The sculpture comprises painted earthenware, glass, and concrete, while the base is concrete.
“[Matthews’] creation encompasses several pools, with beautiful, bas-relief imagery on either side,” the city news release points out. “The fountain takes its name from the south-facing panel — a depiction of a welcoming mermaid flanked by two vibrant dolphins. The north-facing panel portrays the Tree of Life with intricate carvings of Florida’s native animals, plants, and birds. Along with these primary panels, the fountain boasts 30 additional panels with charming vignettes. The fountain pool basins and surrounding sidewalks are also adorned with ceramic images of an octopus, a lobster, and other sea creatures. It adds up to a rich and immersive experience,” the release adds.
The Smithsonian says that its information about the artwork “was compiled as part of the Smithsonian American Art Museum’s Inventories of American Painting and Sculpture database, designed to provide descriptive and location information on artworks by American artists in public and private collections worldwide.”
On its website, the Smithsonian explains, “The Inventory of American Paintings and the Inventory of American Sculpture were created by the Smithsonian American Art Museum to assist researchers in locating American paintings and sculptures for comparative study. Together the Inventories reference over 400,000 artworks in public and private collections worldwide. Records are compiled from a variety of sources
including published catalogues, collection checklists, reports from collectors, journals, and magazines. The records include basic descriptive information on each artwork, including artist, title, execution date, dimensions, markings and inscriptions, subject, owner, and location. Over 21,000 painters and nearly 15,000 sculptors are represented in the database.”
“We are happy to see L’Aria della Figlia Muta receive the recognition it deserves from the Smithsonian Institution,” Mary Davis Wallace, manager of public art for the City of Sarasota, said in the release. “[Matthews’] work has not only beautified our city,” Wallace continued, “but has also become an integral part of Sarasota’s cultural and artistic identity. This honor is a testament to Nancy’s talent and the lasting impact of her work.”
City action in 2016 to ensure protection of fountain
In early November 2016, as The Sarasota News Leader reported at the time, the Sarasota City Commission approved a resolution that added to what was then Pineapple Park an 18-foot-wide strip on the far western side of the site. That was seen as an effort to ensure ongoing protection of the Mermaid Fountain.
Prior to the vote, City Attorney Robert Fournier reminded the board members that, in February 2016, they had they approved the sale of property comprising the eastern 30 feet of a 60-foot-wide strip on the western side of the park. Because of that, he continued, the fountain actually stood outside the park’s borders.
The 1,755-square-foot parcel that was the focus of the November 2016 resolution was part of Lemon Avenue before that street was realigned under the aegis of the Downtown Master Plan 2020, city documents pointed out.
Lemon Avenue formerly was located within a 60-foot-wide strip of land to the east of Pineapple Park. The master plan called for the relocation of a portion of the street so the intersection of Lemon Avenue and Pineapple Avenue on the east side of Pineapple would line up with the intersection of McAnsh Square and Pineapple Avenue on the west side of Pineapple Avenue, the November 2016 resolution said.
During that November 2016 meeting, then-City Manager Tom Barwin also reported that Jerry Fogle, director of the city’s Parks and Recreation Department, was “working diligently” to bring together the appropriate experts to rehabilitate the foundation.
Caribbean influences in Matthews’ work
Matthews, who grew up in the Virgin Islands, has explained “that the cultures and spirituality of the Caribbean have deeply influenced her work,” the city’s Sept. 9 news release continues. “As she also studied the work on the unconscious by noted Swiss psychiatrist Carl Jung, her work tends to incorporate archetypes and myths. The majority of her commissions have been architectural carvings, applying ceramics to the interiors and exteriors of buildings. She has additionally created works in fabric sculpture (articulated dolls), jewelry, and prayer bags.”
After Matthews settled in Southwest Florida area, the release points out, she received her first commission for architectural ceramics “from renowned Sarasota School architect Carl Abbott. For the next 40 years,” the release continues, “she received a succession of commissions by word of mouth and referral from clients.”
She has shown her work at the Allyn Gallup Gallery, the Marie Selby Museum, The Ringling, the Bishop Museum, and the Florida Craftsman Gallery in St. Petersburg, the release adds.