Key West International Sand Art Competition

Welcome to the 2014 Key West International Sand Art Competition

 

Key West International Sand Art Competition

The Key West International Sand Art Competition was held this past weekend at the Casa Marina Resort. It was part of the larger Art! Key West! festivities taking place around the island. Six sculptors showcased their artistic talents and thousands of people turned out to see them design their masterpieces.

Each artist began with over seven tons of sand (approximately 15,000 pounds), which they spent the first day shoveling. The sculptures are made with only sand, water, and a fantastic imagination. The results from the various sculptors were outstanding displays of craftsmanship and creative vision.

Local artist Chris Guinto sculpted one of my personal favorites, Attack of the Killer Fly Trap. One side of the sculpture showed an innocent scene of a gingerbread man sitting beside a plant on a windowsill.

With a stunning display of texture and detail, the reverse shows what happened when the plant attacked and consumed the gingerbread man.

 

Rusty Croft, sculptor and host of the Travel Channel reality show Sand Masters, offered up the unique entry called Eye Candy. I found it to have just the right mixture of vintage beauty, curves, fluidity, and creepiness.

Another artist with whimsical vision and an incredible use of spherical design was Dan Doubleday who sculpted Her World. Reminiscent of The Little Prince, his artwork showed a small girl sitting atop a sphere surrounded by waves and dolphins.

Guy-Olivier Duveau traveled all the way from Quebec, Canada to the Southernmost Point to participate in the competition. His entry, Decay/Evolve, was impressive in its sheer height and attention to detail.
 

The winner of the People's Choice Award was Dan Belcher, sculptor of Heads & Tails. This intricately detailed artwork shows an eagle taking flight from one side of a coin as a buffalo breaks free from the other side.

The overall winner of the 2014 Key West International Sand Art Competition was Benjamin Probanza. His sculpture, Yin Yang, won both the Sculptor's Choice Award and the Conch Republic Award. His work fused artistic talent with multiple levels of meaning and interpretation to create a mind-blowing sand art creation.

 

 

This past Thanksgiving weekend, we were thankful for these artists, the hospitality of the Casa Marina Resort, and the City of Key West for hosting this display of talent.  Walking among the sand sculptures and palm trees, I was reminded to slow down and enjoy the journey...

For more information about living in Key West or buying/selling Key West property, please visit us at Royal Palms Realty.

Come home to paradise and turn your dreams of tropical living into a reality!

Summer in Key West

Summer in Key West

Summer in Key West passes in a haze of heat and humidity, and this year was no exception. In fact, it was even hotter than usual in the Southernmost City this summer, but that didn't slow us down at all. It's obvious from the lack of posts lately that I haven't spent my summer blogging, and for that, I apologize. So, what have we been doing this summer in Key West?

We bid farewell to The Top, the iconic watering hole located on the rooftop of La Concha Hotel. It sadly closed its doors as a bar and will reopen soon as a high end spa...

The Top of the world in Key West... thanks for the memories!

Sailboats bob in the Gulf of Mexico

St. Paul's Episcopal Church and the view to the North

Looking South at the Atlantic and the Key West Lighthouse

...we hung out with the local wildlife...

A friendly rooster joins us for dinner at the Hogfish Bar & Grill

A tree frog stops by my balcony for a visit

One of the many iguanas I pass on my daily run

A baby manatee at the Hurricane Hole Marina

...we enjoyed festivals like the 2014 Hemingway Days...

A Papa Lookalike collects donations for the Scholarship Fund

The raffle winner atop the lead bull for the annual Running of the Bulls

Thousands of people gathered to celebrate Hemingway's 115th birthday

Happy Birthday, Papa!

...we came together as a community to help the legendary Mr. Chapman in his time of need. A fundraiser was held at the Lazy Gecko and he led a lighted bike parade on Duval Street...

Mr. Chapman and his bike are a fixture of Bahama Village and Duval Street

Mr. Chapman gets ready to lead the lighted bike parade

...we spent some time sailing and snorkeling North America's only living coral reef...

Enjoying a day out on the water

The late afternoon sun sparkles on the Atlantic Ocean

...we joined the Key West Chamber of Commerce...

Scott Forman and other local business owners are welcomed at the Chamber of Commerce Luncheon

...and we welcomed Diana Nyad back to Key West a year after her incredible feat of swimming from Cuba to Key West...

Diana Nyad holds aloft the plaque that will be placed on the seawall at Smathers Beach

...But mostly we worked really hard doing what we do best -- listing and selling real estate! Here are some of Royal Palms Realty's recently sold properties:

1327 White St. -- $1,240,000 -- Midtown West

3334 Riviera Drive -- $920,000 -- New Town Key West

805 Virginia Street -- $690,000 -- Old Town Key West

 

600 Frances Street -- $875,000 -- Old Town Key West

1410 Duncan Street -- $764,000 -- Old Town Key West

814 Carey Lane -- $1,150,000 -- Old Town Key West

1421 Reynolds Street -- $525,000 -- Casa Marina District

8 Cannon Royal Drive -- $795,000 -- Shark Key

We also added some fantastic new listings this summer. You can check them out here (and click the links for more info!):

409-B Emma Street -- $1,130,000 -- Truman Annex

7 Nassau Lane -- $495,000 -- Old Town Key West

2107 Flagler Avenue -- $725,000 -- Midtown East

812 Windsor Lane -- $1,560,000 -- Old Town Key West

413 Frances Street -- Price Reduced to $1,095,000 -- Old Town Key West

Would you like to arrange a showing or receive more information about any of our listings? Please call or text Scott at 305-923-9884 or Sara at 305-434-5389. Alternatively, you can complete the "Contact Us" form on the right, or visit us at Royal Palms Realty for more information about any of these properties or other homes for sale in Key West. 

Come home to paradise and turn your dreams of tropical living into a reality!