Restoration project to bring St. Armands statues back to life

St. Armands Circle draws visitors from all over the world for its shopping, proximity to Lido Beach and its key location as a gateway to Longboat Key. But the area also has a unique draw not exactly replicated anywhere else. Dotted throughout the roundabout streets is an assortment of 30-some lifesized statues.

No one is more well-versed in the history of those Renaissance-inspired statues than Edward Pinto, who led the effort to install the pieces in 2007 and recently appeared before the St. Armands Residents Association to appeal for help to bring them back to their former glory.

A handful of the sculptures can be traced back to Sarasota's star, John Ringling. Pinto pointed out these pieces while giving a walking tour of the collection extensive enough to surprise, perhaps, even longtime residents.

Photo by Dana Kampa

Those few from his collection have some visible wear, mostly occurring from their brief stay on nearby beaches, where they faced the harshest elements. Pinto said planners have already taken measures to prevent their further degradation with a fine coating that preserves the sculptures.

Of bigger concern are some more modern pieces, particularly a handless Christopher Columbus.

He noted city officials have carried out some preservative works, though the use of steel not resistant to the ravages of salty air, burrowing lichens and other corrosive elements leaves more work to be done.

So, he is sending out the S.O.S. to the community — Save Our Statues.

Pinto said community members can donate to the St. Armands Residents Association charitable fund to help support the work, which was jumpstarted with an anonymous $25,000 donation in September 2022.

Besides wear from natural elements, vandals have caused damage to some statues, Pinto said. Until a month ago, a headless, handless statue titled "Music" that is one of the "Seven Virtues" greeted visitors to the Circle from the south.

"There are two that were completely destroyed," he said, the other being part of "The Four Seasons Allegory" near Monroe Drive.

The "Music" statue held many layers of meaning for the Sarasota area, particularly the importance of performing arts in its history. Ringling famously brought Czechoslovakian band music to the region, and the artists have continued to flourish in the community for decades.

Photo by Dana Kampa

Pinto was able to recently facilitate its replacement through the same studio that crafted the original, giving her a new harp in recognition of his wife's mother's talent. 

But he's not stopping there.

Besides repairing Columbus, Pinto is prioritizing work on Apollo and Daphne, depicting a scene in which the nymph transforms into a laurel tree to escape his grasp.

Preserving the statues inspired by Ringling's vision has become Pinto's lifelong passion project, one he is sharing with his son.