Recognition marks the Cultural Council’s 10th statewide honor in two years for its Art in Public Places Program
Jacksonville, Fla. (June 16, 2026): The Cultural Council of Greater Jacksonville (CCGJ) announced today that six projects commissioned through its Art in Public Places (APP) Program have been recognized by the Florida Association of Public Art Professionals (FAPAP) at its 2026 State Conference showcasing emerging trends and creative approaches in transforming spaces across the field.
Of 54 projects recognized statewide this year, six belong to CCGJ, representing 11 percent of all honorees and underscoring the program’s continued leadership in Florida’s public art. The honors represent successive achievement joining last year’s four project recognitions for a total of 10 honors in two years.
All six honored projects were funded through a historic CPAC investment on behalf of the City of Jacksonville, with $25,000 allocated for public art in each of the six Jacksonville Citizen Planning Advisory Committee (CPAC) regions, ensuring each piece reflected the identity of its community. The initiative underscored the role local artists play in connecting people to place through neighborhood revitalization across the city. It also reflected CCGJ's continued investment in artists as small businesses and in talent retention and attraction, with these works joining a public art collection in which 57% of artists are based in Northeast Florida.
As the City of Jacksonville’s legislated Local Arts Agency, the CCGJ champions public art as a catalyst for unique partnerships that shape Jacksonville’s evolving public art landscape. This year’s honored projects highlight a growing trend toward functional art in the built environment to deliver both visual interest in form and function by serving a practical purpose, such as wayfinding or seating.
The six CCGJ projects receiving recognition from FAPAP are:
• Cookout by David Nackashi, a mural at the Charles “Boobie” Clark Center that captures the spirit, faces, and stories of the Sherwood neighborhood, creating a compelling gateway to the neighborhood by celebrating its playfulness, charity, strength, resiliency and pride.
• Birdhouse by David Nackashi, a mural wrap refurbishing the Lane Wiley Park picnic shelter, featuring the Florida Scrub Jay as a symbol of community, service, and family within the Hyde Park neighborhood.
• Big Woofs and Tiny Tails by d. lance vickery, artistic wayfinding elements at Oceanway Park to address the difficulty in locating two different dog park entries at opposite ends of the park through elements that reflect the community’s character with colorful paw prints and sculptural signage.
• A Fine Day by Main Made Studios, sculptural signage at the Beachwood Center that provides essential wayfinding for a building tucked away from the street, while evoking the area’s coastal character through colors representative of Beachwood schools.
• Wings of Change by Jenny K. Hager, a wall-mounted sculpture of powder-coated aluminum butterflies activating the atrium at the Kennedy Center to encourage engagement and movement that reflects the space’s varied uses and forthcoming butterfly garden.
• Draw and Dream by Jenny K. Hager, sculptural benches at Deerwood Children’s Rotary Park designed to address limited seating in response to community input for playful, inviting, and accessible seating that encourages exploration and engagement.
Submissions undergo a peer review process before selected pieces are presented to an audience of state municipal leaders, administrators, and curators at the FAPAP annual conference, serving as a definitive benchmark for excellence, creativity, and innovation in Florida’s public spaces.
“Ten statewide public art honors in two years tells us something important about Jacksonville. This is not just recognition. It is momentum,” said Diana Donovan, Executive Director of the Cultural Council of Greater Jacksonville. “The cities winning the future are the cities investing in the creative sector through experience and quality of place. Jacksonville’s creative sector is a powerful economic engine that drives tourism, supports local businesses, attracts top talent, and fuels investment. These awards celebrate outstanding projects, but they also signal something bigger: Jacksonville is building a more vibrant, competitive, and connected city through the power of the arts.”
Founded in 1997, FAPAP is dedicated to the development, advocacy, promotion, and education of the public art field in the State of Florida, and promotes national best practices in the administration of public art programs for individuals, institutions, governments, and businesses involved in all aspects of public art.
To learn more about how the Cultural Council’s Art in Public Places Program is elevating the profile of public art, visit culturalcouncil.org.
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About the Cultural Council of Greater Jacksonville:
For more than 50 years, the Cultural Council of Greater Jacksonville has been the engine behind Northeast Florida's creative economy, channeling public and private investment into the arts to strengthen neighborhoods, retain talent, and elevate quality of life across the region. As the City of Jacksonville's officially designated Local Arts Agency, this private, not-for-profit 501(c)(3) organization regrants funding and manages public art initiatives that turn investment into visible, lasting community impact. Governed by a volunteer board of directors, the Cultural Council continues to meet the evolving needs of the arts and cultural sector, proving that investing in culture is investing in Jacksonville's future. Learn more at culturalcouncil.org.