ArtServe and The Pride Center have selected Fort Lauderdale native and talented artist Steven Teller to create the design for a nearly 3,000-sq.-ft. mural that will enliven the walls of The Pride Center and The Residences at Equality Park in Wilton Manors. As one of the nation’s largest LGBTQ+ community centers, The Pride Center’s five-and-a-half-acre Equality Park campus will be home to The Residences at Equality Park, Florida’s very first affordable housing community with customized support services for LGBTQ+ seniors. Highly visible from Dixie Highway, a busy urban corridor in the heart of Broward, these murals will transform the Equality Park campus into a vibrant public art destination.
Teller’s application and submission ranked highest among more than 90 artists who competed for selection by the ArtServe-coordinated jury. Criteria included a statement of artistic vision, a demonstration of technical skill, creativity and relevance of design, and overall impression of the artist and their work.
“Steven’s artwork is beautiful and inspiring. It elicits positive emotions and a sense of unity that will be a beacon of joy shared by The Equality Park residents, tenants and neighbors for generations to come,” said Ed King, part of the ArtServe team that crafted the call for artists and chose the winner. “We take our role very seriously when it comes to being a ‘seed planter’ and facilitator of paid opportunities to further our artists’ careers, since integrating them with the business community affords substantial economic development for all. The mural project checked all of those boxes and ArtSeve is profoundly grateful to have been selected as The Pride Center’s partner.”
ArtServe will now work with Teller and The Pride Center’s technical team on the mural’s physical installation. “It’s really surprising how much math and science art entails,” King added.
“Historically, between 1,000 and 2,000 people have utilized services on our campus daily,” said The Pride Center’s CEO, Robert Boo. “The Equality Park campus serves as a vibrant, vital hub for the community-a welcoming, inclusive, popular public-space for engagement and interaction. I am so incredibly excited to witness the positive and uplifting impact that Steven Teller’s signature style of bright and imaginative creativity infused with deep meaning will bring – not only to this space, but to the entire community. Clients and visitors use the outdoor spaces on campus to enjoy lunch, meet a neighbor, host weddings, gather for candlelight vigils, throw parties, chat with a sponsor, memorialize a loved one and listen to live music.”
To install the mural, which will be crafted from metal sheets onto which Teller’s art will be printed, an architect first must delineate the specifications. Equipped with those measurements and working from his studio in St. Augustine, Teller will then create the actual artwork, which will be photographed, digitized, transferred to metal sheets and installed on The Pride Center façade, which comprises 1,245 sq. ft. of The Pride Center’s existing Schubert Building and 1,535 sq. ft. of The Residences at Equality Park.
“I am beyond excited to be a part of this mural project and with the selection of Steven Teller as our mural artist,” said Jason Hagopian, Pride Center Board Member and Principal Architect of TSAO Design Group. “Steven’s work is awe inspiring and his heartfelt approach to all his art is visible throughout his portfolio. I am happy to not only serve on the Pride Center Board but to assist the design team with architectural technical expertise that Steven will need to create his murals. These murals will be visible and accessible to all that come to The Residences and The Pride Center. The power they will have to create conversations, foster relationships and transform attitudes in the community cannot be underestimated.”
To fully absorb and invoke the essence of The Pride Center and Equality Park in his creative process, the 30- year-old Teller is currently interviewing diverse members of the local LGBTQ+ community to educate himself on its impact and better understand the importance and relevance of LGBTQ+ community centers like The Pride Center, which has been serving South Florida for more than 27 years.
“The more I learn about the world around me, the more I tend to notice similar points being drawn. When I connect the dots, the visual elements of my artwork begin to emerge,” Teller explained about his plan for the mural’s ultimate content, which he envisions will come to life with symbolic elements of The Pride Center community’s growth reflected through his trademark use of bright, harmonious colors evocative of nature and florals intertwined in a geometric, abstract space.
Teller, who is a graduate of American Heritage in Plantation and the Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD) in Georgia, expects his working design to be ready for digitization by mid-August 2020, with final installation of the metal panels scheduled for September.
Support for The Murals at Equality Park project has been provided by the following Funds at the Community Foundation of Broward:
Brogan Family Fund
Frederick W. Jaqua Fund
Helen A. Chadwick Fund
Elizabeth Ryan Fund