Hollywood by the Sea

By Louise Irvine WMODA was acclaimed as the “Diamond of Dania Beach” as we built the reputation of our decorative arts museum in Broward’s first city. Now we are moving nearby to the “Diamond of the Gold Coast” the name adopted by Hollywood for the city’s 50th Anniversary in 1975.

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A Recent Revelation

By Louise Irvine As part of the Great WMODA Pack-up, the museum team has been ensuring that every object in the collection is cataloged so that it can be tracked to its future location. This intensive research project has revealed some interesting discoveries. For example, this monumental terracotta sculpture of

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Gilding the Lily

By Louise Irvine Embellishing something that is already beautiful is known as “Gilding the Lily”. The saying can have negative connotations as the perfect flower does not need improvement. However, artists of the Aesthetic movement used glittering gold for dramatic effect on their wall plaques and tiles as can be

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Stepping Out!

The mystery Wedgwood Blue Jasper ware object is a shoe heel! It was made for H & M Rayne, suppliers of footwear to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. Edward Rayne first came up with the idea of Jasperware high heels in 1958 and they were back in vogue in 1977.

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Talking Out Your Glass

In 2023, flameworking pioneer Paul Stankard will celebrate his 80th birthday. To commemorate more than four decades at the torch, the artist joined Shawn Waggoner, host of the Talking Out Your Glass podcast, to discuss his contributions to glass and art, including his new book, Inspiration from the Art of Paul

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Auld Lang Syne

By Louise Irvine Scots around the world welcome the New Year with Hogmanay festivities. The celebrations begin on December 31 and continue through January 2, a Scottish bank holiday. The customs are probably derived from Norse and Gaelic observances of the winter solstice and usually include gift-giving and “first-footing” the

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A Safari for the Soul

While WMODA is temporarily closed, you can continue on our Safari for the Soul to see Ardmore Ceramic Art at the Palm Beach Show from February 16-21. Each year, the Pascoe Gallery mounts a spectacular selling exhibition at this event which is one of the highlights of Florida’s art and

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Art Deco New Year

Miami Beach is one of the Art Deco capitals of the world and from January 13-15, the city will be celebrating the 46th Annual Art Deco Weekend. Take a stroll along Ocean Drive and then head to the Wolfsonian Museum on Saturday, January 14 at 1pm for an entertaining lecture,

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Happy Holidays

The Holidays are a little different this year at WMODA. Although we are surrounded by thousands of boxes, they are not beautifully gift-wrapped! We are busy packing our fired arts collection for the Great WMODA Pack-Up & Move early next year. Santa’s Elves have some serious competition - so far

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The Immortal Jellyfish

By Louise Irvine Childhood seaside holidays evoke images of jellyfish washed up on the sand and groups of frightened but fascinated kids prodding them with toy spades. We were warned that they could still sting if the tentacles were hydrated which made swimming in the North Sea even more terrifying

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