HomeMy WebLinkAbout2004 Sebastian Clerk aims to restore paintingSebastian clerk aims
to restore
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FLORIDA TODAY
SEBASTIAN — The paint of
the landscape — water under
the dugout being paddled by a
Seminole Indian — may be
cracking, but the 10-foot-long
historic painting should be re-
stored, the Sebastian City Clerk
says.
The five -foot -tall painting
was found upstairs in city hall,
among dusty Christmas deco-
rations and boxes of papers.
Sebastian City Clerk Sally Maio
wants to make sure the oil
painting remains part of the
building. "It's a part of our his-
tory and it should be pre-
served," she said.
When the new city hall is
built, her office is slated to be-
come a community center and
she hopes the new painting will
hang on its walls for the whole
communityto enjoy.
Meta Chesser Bolinger pres-
ented the painting to the city in
1974. It was commissioned
from a Webster, Florida artist
dedicated to her father, Captain
Robert G. Hardee. Hardee
served on the Sebastian city
council for 11 years. Bolinger
was the first woman to serve on
painting
the city council in 1955.
Hardee lived from 1872 to
1947, according to "Tales of
Sebastian," a history published
in 1990 by the Sebastian River
Area Historical Society, Inc. He
was the postmaster of Sebas-
tian from 1904 to 1906. He rep-
resented the area in Tallahas-
see when Indian River County
was formed in 1925.
No one can tell if the painting
ever publicly hung, when it was
removed or when and why it
was placed in the upstairs stor-
age room, Maio said.
"I can't even tell who painted
it," she said. The painting is
signed, but it can't be easily dis-
cerned.
Richard Dougherty, a
40-year artist himself and
member of the Sebastian River
Art Club, said he wants a Vero
Beach restorer to look at the
painting and see what would
need to be done to preserve it
and prevent more cracking or
peeling.
"It's very attractive. It would
be great if it could go in the
lobby of the new city hall," he
said. ■
Contact Jump at 409.1423 or
(lump@flatoday.net