Today on “First Coast Connect,” our weekly Media Roundtable included Dan Scanlan from the Florida Times-Union, Folio Weekly Editor Claire Goforth and David Cawton (01:10), reporter for the Jacksonville Financial News and Daily Record. Duval Audubon Society Education Director Brett Moyer (38:48) told us about the large flock of purple martins that have been roosting in downtown Jacksonville the past several weeks, and artist Gabriel Dawe (45:19) discussed his new exhibit on display in the Museum of Contemporary Art’s atrium.
Media Roundtable
The panel discussed the viral video of a local man’s being ticketed for jaywalking and not having a driver’s license despite being on foot at the time of the incident. The license charge was dropped this week. The panel also discussed the proposal by Mayor Lenny Curry to invest city money in a new athletic field and dormitory improvements at Edward Waters College, and another to greatly expand infrastructure spending in Jacksonville.
Purple Martins
Bird watchers have been enjoying a real treat this summer in Jacksonville. An estimated more than 20,000 purple martins are roosting in the trees between the Jacksonville Landing and the Times-Union Center along Hogan Street. The extraordinary pre-migration roosting downtown should go on through the end of July or Mid-August, nightly at sunset. The Audubon Society is hosting a watching event 8 p.m. Saturday near The Landing.
MOCA’s Project Atrium
Gabriel Dawe is using miles of polyester thread to create a giant, multicolored art work through embroidery. He suspends a prism of colors in mid-air through a series of hooks attached to the walls and ceiling, as he and his assistant work on scissor lifts using a long extension pole that functions as a giant needle. Visitors can watch as he creates the work before the exhibit officially opens next week.
Kevin Meerschaert can be reached at kmeerschaert@wjct.org, 904-358-6334 or on Twitter at @KMeerschaertJax.
