Arts advocate Tom Hall recognizes Lovegrove's impact on local tourism

[This post is brought to you by Tom Hall, an Estero-based art journalist and arts advocate who writes to Florida Weekly, The River Weekly News and his art/indie film/theater blog, Art Southwest Florida.]

Following an appearance on Fox4 Morning Blend this past Tuesday, Matlacha artist Leoma Lovegrove headed over to Bealls Department Store on Cleveland Ave (just north of Daniels) to paint out loud and autograph purchases for a host of fans and Valentine’s Day shoppers.

Lovegrove became associated with the Bradenton-based department store four years ago, in February of 2013. The department store chain saw some of her paintings and liked Lovegrove’s bold, vibrant colors and the way her images capture Southwest Florida’s active, healthy, water-based lifestyle.

Being a prudent, smartly-run company, Bealls deemed it prudent to test the water by doing market analysis and focus group testing. After completing their due diligence, they introduced a limited line of casual wear bearing new images they commissioned Lovegrove to create. The designs caught on, and so the following year, Bealls expanded its Lovegrove product line, adding handbags, totes, luggage, beach towels, Tervis drinkware and more. The new products were rolled out at the same outlet in the Cypress Trace Shopping Center in Fort Myers where they’d first announced their affiliation with the artist. To mark the occasion, Lovegrove painted a seahorse live for a crowd of nearly 200.

Since then, Bealls has expanded its Lovegrove product line, which it offers in each of the Department Store’s 74 brick-and-mortar department stores throughout the State of Florida as well as online.

It is rewarding whenever any artist attains commercial success, but Southwest Florida residents and business owners have reason to be particularly appreciative of the popularity of her designs with Bealls patrons.

Each of the millions of Lovegrove products offered and sold by Bealls mentions Matlacha Island. Over the course of her four-year affiliation with the company, scores of Bealls customers have gleefully embarked upon a pilgrimage to visit the artist in her sunny island gallery and gardens or attend one of her Paint Out Loud performances at a local Bealls outlet.

 

When they come, they don’t just spend money at Lovegrove Gallery & Gardens or Bealls. They buy gas at an area service station, a meal at a local café or bistro, and shop the other galleries and boutiques that line Pine Island Road, Cleveland Avenue or downtown Fort Myers. Her success benefits the community’s economy. Art  means business, whether on an individual or public scale.

 

Lovegrove is no stranger to the interplay between art and tourism. She worked for years with the Lee County Visitors & Convention Bureau (VCB) to bring international tourism to Southwest Florida destinations. And two years ago, the VCB and Greater Fort Myers Chamber of Commerce Inc. honored Lovegrove during its annual Chrysalis Awards luncheon with its prestigious Junonia Award. Created in 2006, the Junonia Award recognizes individuals who have positively impacted the local tourism community by demonstrating unique capabilities, leadership, commitment, and dedication. Lovegrove was chosen in 2015 for her tireless promotion of the destination for more than a decade and a half.

In presenting the award to Lovegrove, Tamara Pigott, executive director of the VCB, described Lovegrove’s contagious love of Florida that has been instrumental in encouraging tourism from around the world. “The VCB has enjoyed a long-standing partnership with Leoma in promoting our destination. I have personally had the pleasure of working alongside her on many of our national and international marketing programs,” said Pigott.

Lovegrove brings her passion for Southwest Florida to every Bealls design and live art demonstration, as the more than 200 customers saw first-hand during Lovegrove’s Paint Out Loud performance at Bealls this past Valentine’s Day.

Bealls commemorated the occasion by releasing a brand new “heart” T-Shirt for everyone to enjoy.
Beall’s Department Stores is a division of Bealls, Inc. Founded in 1915 as a dry goods store, the Bradenton-based company now operates more than 540 stores in 17 states under the names Beall’s, Beall’s Outlet and Burke’s Outlet. Besides Florida, the company operates stores in Alabama, Arkansas, California, Louisiana, Mississippi, Nevada, New Mexico, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Texas. Today, Beall’s is the destination of choice for casual lifestyle and priced right apparel and home merchandise. To learn more about Bealls, please visit BeallsFlorida.com.