Artist Lisa Hoke transforms future SMOA classroom

ARTmuse artist Lisa Hoke jokes that she’s worried the portion of wall she’s building her installation on is too alcoholic-looking. She’s creating a large-scale installation from colorful recycled cardboard in one of the classrooms at historic Sarasota High School, the future home of Sarasota Museum of Art (SMOA). It’s Friday, Jan. 17, and she’s about a day into the two-week building process. The wall is covered in yellow and orange recycled boxes from pumpkin beer, Patron and champagne. She’ll have to mix in a few more Cheerios boxes to even things out.

Two volunteers in the adjacent classroom sort cardboard cups, drinking straws and boxes according to their colors. There are two classrooms completely littered with cardboard stacked on tables and the floor — it was all donated from the community and community businesses. Down the hallway equally covered in recycled paper products, three volunteers cut stars and circular graphic details from individual packaging.
Hoke instructs the volunteers daily as to which details she’d like them to cut out. In just a day, she has a 10-foot tall corner of the classroom covered from floor to ceiling.

The ARTmuse program brings renowned artists yearly to portray the kind of programming that will come once the doors to SMOA open.

IF YOU GO 
Docent-led tours of ARTmuse
When: 10:30 a.m. to noon and 1:30 to 3 p.m. through Feb. 4; 1:30 to 3 p.m. weekends from Feb. 8 through April 19
Where: Historic Sarasota High School, 1001 S. Tamiami Trail, Sarasota
Cost: Free
Info: Call 309-7662