Contemporary art aficionados may want to head out to Polk County this weekend. On Saturday night from 6 to 10 p.m., Platform Florida debuts its 11th lineup of visual art, film, music and fashion in a vacant office building in downtown Lakeland transformed for the evening into a multimedia art showcase. Titled Almost Strictly Blues, the latest iteration of the twice-yearly event features blues band Sarasota Slim, Bay area poet and performer Venus Jones and about 20 Central Florida artists producing work in a wide variety of genres.
For the first time ever, installations take a starring role with Tampa artists Shane Hoffman and Kim Radatz and Lakeland's Holly Murkerson dabbling in the immersive medium. Keep an eye peeled for paintings by photographer-musician Rick Runion (don headphones to listen to an original soundtrack for each image), work by Orlando painter Ed Hernandez and Lakeland folk artist Don Stone, and a photography exhibit featuring students from Polk Community College. A fashion show and an outdoor screening of a Best of Platform short film series round out the attractions. "The whole thing is always a surprise to me," says organizer Ann Wilson, who was still hammering out the details at press time. Admission to Platform is $15, which includes beer, wine and hors d'oeuvres, or $8 for students with ID; for more information, go to platformflorida.com.
This article appears in Feb 27 – Mar 4, 2008.