Is this any way to treat art? Palmetto Bay - the disposable society. Oh, the irony. And, by the way, when did Coral Reef Park get repurposed as a dump?

The irony. This piece of eco-art, made out of recycled materials, ends up in the trash.

You may have hated it, but this art piece speaks volumes as does the way it has been treated by the current Mayor and Village Council. They decided to trash it. Shame on them. 

[EDITOR'S UPDATE (9:25 PM)]: Palmetto Bay Council Member David Singer has indicated to me that he is not part of any decision to dump this art, that he is "...disgusted by the way it has been handled by the Village.")

By the way, the eco-art was donated.  It should be either properly stored, returned to the donor or given to someone who has an appreciation for this kind of art. Not everyone has the same taste in art.

The discovery of the unceremoniously trashed art has been a subject of several Facebook posts. The art piece had its critics and its fans, but the discussion here is how this current Mayor and Council treat things they no longer have use for - or appreciation for. This is not a very 'green' way to treat art, especially eco-art. 

Comments on the Facebook post thread have included (as of posting of this blog):

(JS) "I liked it. It was perfect for bottleneck circle......It's a Southern custom and it's suppose to ward evil things away"

(SB) "Terrible slap in the face to the artist, why not just burn an author’s book. I’m ashamed of how this village treated the artist."

(WiP) "Whether you loved it or hated it, this was someone’s art piece... terrible"

(MR) "This has to be a joke? We wouldn’t really handle someone’s hard work like that."

(JS -updated) "You know what? ......If no one wants it, I'll take it. I went to a ladies house in Coral Gables & she has a bottle tree at the entrance to her house. I think it I over 100 years old."

JS's comments provide a history and tradition of this type of art, - see a Pinterest Post (CLICK HERE)

Wouldn't it be great to place this in a garden, reminiscent of a bottle tree as mentioned in the classic children's book Because of Winn Dixie, by Florida author, Kate DiCamillo?
 The bottle tree is a Southern tradition. Also see:Wide Open Country, online, Build Your Own Bottle Tree Like the Southerners Do and Make Recycle Yard Decor, by Holly Skaggs

Proper care for donate art by government: A fair question is whether you would donate something you valued to this Village if you thought for even a moment that your donation would be 'dumped' - not displayed, but dumped - in a park akin to garbage waiting to be collected. 

Which also brings me to another question, why are we 'dumping' things at Coral Reef Park? It's a Park for goodness sake, not a dump.

Above - Trashed eco-art at Coral Reef Park - it makes a statement, don't you think?

The eco-art's brief placement at the SW 168th Street / 82nd Ave Traffic Circle

Online references / articles providing background on the art piece:

This eco-art was originally displayed out front of the Palmetto Bay Municipal Center from 2011 to October 2014, See New bronze sculpture installed at Village Hall, by: Gary Alan Ruse |October 29, 2014. It was then stored until it was placed TEMPORARILY at the traffic circle at SW 168th Street and 82nd Avenue, see the article of July 26, 2018, Traffic Circle at 168 Street / 82nd Av has a temporary AIPP piece installed under a permanent art piece is selected and installed.

In the meantime, let's hope this piece is neither stolen or broken as well as it does not cause injury to any child who may be attracted to playing in this area used to store unwanted items in the park.