We live in a world these days where there's a recipe and a formula for everything, and
that doesn't bring out the best in humanity when we can solve problems and give expression
to our deepest passions. That's everything.
The Smithert Park is named after John Smithert, who was a great proponent of folk art and
a collector of folk art and a supporter of the arts. And the Orange Show Foundation for
Visionary Art is sponsoring this, and so this is part of the Orange Show Center for Visionary Art.
It's dedicated to folk art. It has a huge mosaic wall that's divvied up into like 50 plus panels
where individual artists can undertake like a mosaic section and there's like large features,
there's a cover pavilion, there's swings down the way, there's traditional porch swings,
and there's also like going to be installed of like a it's like a 10-foot long like old-fashioned
wooden swing that you can like a bunch of people can sit on together and swing. And
like there's going to be like a Plinko Tower and like a meditation garden, and then there's this
big grotto. It's in memory of my husband. He and I were childhood sweethearts, or
day when he was, I was 12 and he was 13, and he passed away of lymphoma 12 years ago,
and he and I have collected self-taught art for probably 25 years, and so this is an extension
of self-taught art. Dedicating this to John's vision was really important. John always said,
where there is art, there is life, where there is art, there is community, and we all feel that
this park is just going to be such a cultural asset to the city of Houston. It's just going to be a
community gathering place for performers and families and corporations to come and really
experience the creative process. Well, folk art is primarily an activity of people who don't know
anything about art, but they have this urge to create something, and they use whatever they have.
So, it might be tin cans, it might be broken bottles, it could be anything, and so that's pretty
much what the materials of folk art are. Everything's like contributed by people, by the community,
from Houston, from wherever, but it's all brought here by us and the community at large,
and then it's put together with five people that really don't know, like they had no previous
training with this, so it's really an organic extension of genuine creativity, I guess,
and the creativity in everybody. Fifty percent of the people here have never done art, quote,
art or mosaic. Some are highly trained artists, so it's this pastiche of people realizing folk art
in a folk art park. One of the things I love about this is that so many Houstonians and people from
around will be involved. It's not just one person, but a lot of Houstonians will be involved. People
can have picnics and quinceaneras, and we've already had somebody wanted to do a wedding out here,
and I see it as small companies using it for parties and get-togethers and family reunions,
so I see it being used in a lot of different ways. The grotto itself that I'm working on is going
to be a place that will foster creativity down the road, you know, there'll be movies here, there'll
be performances, both musical, there'll be drama, I'm sure here too, they do all that kind of stuff
with the orange show, so just like another big venue for that here, and so there'll be a lot of
life in this later on. I think Smither Park is a testament to what people can do. It's a testament
to the vibrancy of humanity, and especially the humanity in Houston. There's a certain vibrancy
in Houston that is magnificent, and so Smither Park is a testament to what people can do
if they dare to be creative and have fun and be outrageous and try things, you know, and that's
what everybody should do.
