|
November 06, 2001 MARINE SCIENCE HOSTS FISH ART 
INNER HARBOR, BALTIMORE, Md.--The entire school of colorful "Fish Out of Water" (FOOW) sculptures, fresh from their summer "swim" for tourists around the city, are together for the first time on the patio of UMBI's Center of Marine Biotechnology (COMB) at the Columbus Center. |  The pop-art fish, Ichthyaeruis Baltimoris, or "aerial fish of Baltimore"- are a promotion for charityby the advocacygroup Downtown Partnership of Baltimore, Inc., based on an idea by Leslie Landsman, an executive with the National Aquarium.
The "school" of fish sculptures is displayed along the harbor from the Columbus Center sign at 701 East Pratt Street, around COMB, and into the shadows of the National Aquarium, thus highlighting Baltimore's major hub of international marine sciences. The fish are sponsored by a wide diversity of businesses, non-profits, schools and community groups in the city. Each sponsor paid $3,750 to fund a sculpture. After public display at COMB, they will be sold at the "Big Catch" Auction and Dinner at the Walters Art Museum on November 17. Project funds are targeted for the Mayor's Advisory Committee on Art and Culture, CityArts Grant program, Baltimore City Schools' BE-Instrumental Arts Initiative, and the Mayor's Initiative to Wire Classrooms. | Special public previews are scheduled in the Columbus Center Hall (under the sail) Sunday, November 11 at 1:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m.; Monday, November 12 at 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.; and Tuesday, November 13 at 4:00 to 8:00 pm. The artists will meet the media during the November 13 hours. Local artist Steve Weitzman of Weitzman Studios, Inc, designed the basic fish sculpture of six feet long, three feet wide and approximately 20 pounds. Design entry applications were offered to approximately 2000 artists, designers and architects. Each participating artist, working with a sponsor, created a unique design, which expresses an aspect of city life. The fish designs mimic a raven, a picture map of the Chesapeake Bay, a mermaid, a taxi, a cocktail lounge, a tall ship, a clown, a kingfish resembling Elvis, and many more. COMB is the cornerstone and research component of the Columbus Center, an international center for marine biotechnology research and education on Pier 5 of the Inner Harbor. For more on the FOOW exhibit and auction, contact: Project Director, Mary Sue McCarthy at 410-321-9700, or visit www.BaltimoreFish.org. For more on COMB, call 410.234.8800. The internationally recognized research laboratory applies research in molecular biology and molecular genetics to aquaculture and fisheries, marine microbial products and processes, and marine pollution and bioremediation.
|
