The Coral Gables Museum is now hosting the following five exhibitions:

GEORGE MERRICK AND HIS VISION FOR CORAL GABLES
Arva Moore Parks, Curator

The new Coral Gables Museum’s introductory exhibit sets the stage for what will follow. It highlights the genius of George Merrick, his family and other visionaries who inspired him and helped him turn his dream into reality. Curated by Arva Moore Parks, designed by Tom Graboski and fabricated by SFY Architectural Signs and Displays, it is housed in The Coral Gables Galleries — five rooms that were once the Coral Gables Police and Fire Station jail. Now beautifully restored, the rooms provide an intimate space to tell the story from the beginning.

“BRINGING BEAUTY INTO OUR LIVES”: Art and Architecture in Coral Gables During the New Deal, 1933–1941
John A. Stuart, AIA, Guest Curator

“Bringing Beauty into Our Lives” offers a stunning new view of the buildings and artworks completed in Coral Gables during the New Deal, which lasted from the inauguration of Franklin Delano Roosevelt in 1933 until the United States entered World War II in 1941. New Deal programs, and particularly those of the Works Progress Administration (WPA), were designed to provide federal funding for local initiatives. Coral Gables was a natural candidate for this kind of patronage. It boasted a vibrant community of local artists and architects, a young and dynamic university, the sports and entertainment provided by the Biltmore Hotel, access to the subtropical beauty of Biscayne Bay, an abundance of native oolitic limestone, and, perhaps most importantly, strong support among residents for Roosevelt’s New Deal policies. The New Deal developed a system of support for artists that ranged from paying artists for the creation of works of art to encouraging the exhibition and dissemination of their work through curated gallery shows. These took place at the Coral Gables Art Center, the Biltmore Hotel, the University of Miami and at the Federal Art Gallery in downtown Miami. Works of local Coral Gables artists were also included in exhibitions that traveled across the nation. The art produced varied dramatically from artist to artist. Common elements of artistic production, however, included a fascination with natural beauty and the documentation of the diversity of the regional human experience. Many works of art were commissioned to enhance new building projects. “Bringing Beauty into Our Lives” also focuses on architecture and on the numerous built projects that both reshaped the landscape of the city and enhanced public amenities. These included the Municipal Building (Police and Fire Station), now home of the Coral Gables Museum and the City of Coral Gables Preservation Department and Archives. Other important projects were the Community House and Library (now the Coral Gables Woman’s Club), the Equipment Depot (now the site of the Village of Merrick Park), the courtyard fountain at Carver School, the construction of Matheson Hammock and its facilities and important buildings at Fairchild Tropical Gardens. While diverse in terms of location and program, each of these projects engaged local materials and, for the most part, local labor. Because of the prominence of the use of local oolitic limestone, much of which was quarried in the city, these collections of architectural elements seem to have developed in harmony, almost as part of the new landscape.

LA FLORIDA
1513-1763
1784-1821
Discover, Explore, Commemorate

In honor of the upcoming 500th Anniversary of Juan Ponce de Leon’s discovery and naming of La Florida, the Coral Gables Museum is proud to present a selection of rare maps and plans of Spanish Florida that trace the European discovery, exploration and settlement of present-day Florida and other sections of the southeastern United States that were once part of La Florida.

Spain established the first permanent settlement in North America at St. Augustine in 1565, fifty-five years before the Pilgrims landed at Plymouth Rock. St. Augustine’s founder, Pedro Menéndez de Avilés, also established several other temporary settlements including Santa Elena in today’s South Carolina and Tequesta on the north bank of the Miami River.

Most of the maps displayed in the exhibit are prints from digital images provided by the Archivo General de las Indias in Seville. Other images were obtained from the Bibioteca Nacional de España in Madrid and from the Ministerio de Guerra and the Ministerio de la Marina. We are most grateful to Spain’s Ministerio de la Cultura for coordinating the exhibit and to Ambassador Cristina Barrios, Consul General of Spain in Miami, who provided the inspiration for the exhibit and opened the doors to the various ministries in Spain that enabled this project to become a reality.

The Museum invites scholars and the public at large to discover and explore these rare documents that highlight Florida’s First and Second Spanish Periods. Speakers, seminars and other special events are planned as we discover, explore and commemorate Spain’s enduring legacy.

CORAL GABLES SISTER CITIES: Partners in Peace
Caroline Parker-Santiago, Curator

The exhibition, Coral Gables’ Sister Cities: Partners in Peace, is dedicated to the City of Coral Gables’ beloved sister cities and the sister cities movement launched by President Dwight D. Eisenhower in 1956. Visitors are invited to learn about the history of this international peace program and uncover the connections between Coral Gables and her sister cities: Aix-en-Provence, France; Cartagena, Colombia; Granada, Spain; La Antigua, Guatemala; and Province of Pisa, Italy. Images and text will tell the story of our nation in a Cold War environment and how Eisenhower, with his extensive wartime experience and leadership abilities, rallied the public to reach out to citizens of other nations in an effort to promote cultural understanding and world peace. "I hate war”, he said, “as only a soldier who has lived it can, only as one who has seen its brutality, its stupidity." Each of the five sister cities will be represented through photographs, objects, explanatory text, videos, books, maps, and other media. A research library will be available for those visitors interested in learning more about a particular sister city.

THE ANTHONY R. ABRAHAM FAMILY GALLERY INAUGURAL EXHIBIT
Curators: Norma Jean, Thomas and Brian Abraham

Anthony Abraham: “The Man Who Couldn’t Say No”
On June 9, 2011, the Coral Gables Museum inaugurated the new Anthony R. Abraham Family Gallery, which the Anthony R. Abraham Family Foundation endowed with a $400,000 gift. The Abraham Family Gallery formerly housed fire trucks and equipment when the building functioned as the City of Coral Gables' Police and Fire Station. It now serves as an exhibit space and the center of children’s activities. Its first exhibit honors family patriarch, Anthony Abraham and highlights his dedication to philanthropy and his many honors and awards. Although Abraham came to South Florida in 1951 to retire, he soon opened Anthony Abraham Chevrolet at LeJeune Road and Eighth Street. It became the largest Chevrolet dealer in South Florida and one of the largest in the country. Proud of his Lebanese roots and a passionate American, he installed a huge illuminated, waving American flag at the dealership. The building, with its signature symbol, became a local landmark. Abraham, who celebrated his 100th birthday in 2011, has left his mark on Coral Gables, South Florida and beyond. He has lived in the same house on South Alhambra Circle for almost 50 years where he, and his late wife Genevieve, raised their five children. The Abraham’s annual Christmas decorations attracted hundreds of families to their home each year. The most important facet of Abraham, however, is his belief in giving back. A variety of institutions, especially those who help children and the poor, have benefited from his generosity. He has inspired his children and grandchildren to continue in his footsteps and follow his example.