It's the end of an era for Coconut Grove

The Windisch-Hunt Gallery is closing after all these years of, well, all these years of everything. It was more than just a gallery, it was a home away from home for many of us. It was a meeting place, a hang out, the center of it all in the Grove.

It's where art was created by many artists. It was a place where all Grove artists had a chance to show their art. Fred Hunt painted in the window for years as he listened to classical music. AnnaMaria ran it all.

Coconuts were painted there at parties, King Mango Strut dances were practiced there, Mad Hatter hats were fashioned there, actual fashion shows and concerts happened, Christmas decorations were created for the street light poles, school children had art outings there, art lessons and seminars were held there, there were birthday parties and there was a high school band concert there just last week and the Hare Krishnas visited weekly and blessed the place. It was the place where artists were taken in after Cafe Tu Tu Tango closed. It was the place you could see real live working artists on almost a daily basis. Where is this going to all happen now? A part of the Grove is now dead.

Even high holy Rinpoche's visit last month didn't seem to bless the place enough for AnnaMaria to keep it going. Guess it's just time for the era to end.

The Grove will not be the same, there will be a big hole, a big loss. Many Grove events that happened here were started there. It housed beds for the Bed Race. It's housing wounded peacocks right now (the fiberglass kind, which are in for repairs). We once proclaimed, "There's Always a Party at AnnaMaria's house!" but now it is all going dark.

All you have to do is do a search above to see all the stories and posts pertaining to the gallery. Some felt it was overkill, but the stories just reflected all the events going on there which was constant.

So this Sunday, the Gallery will close up shop, have a going away party, and come Monday, some poster shop or something like that will move in to take advantage of Art Basel week. At least that is the story I got from a number of people on both sides of the issue. The new people will be in and out in a month or so, leaving a bunch of lives upturned just for the sake of making a few bucks during the art season. It's totally against the true spirit of art and sharing and good karma. It's about the highest bidder.

After they are gone, in a month or so, the space will probably sit empty and dark. I've tried to make sense of it, but none of it makes any sense. I've tried to intervene and almost saved the gallery the other night, but it was not to be. It's all about money. I am not blaming anyone, but it's always about money in the end. Maybe it was just in the stars. But it's a complete loss to our community, because it was more than just an art gallery, it was the place where things happened in the Grove.