Contractors: Steven Ochs and Gerald Taylor by Stacey Enesey Klemenc
Project: Mural at entrance of Freeman Justice Center, Key West, Fla. Sponsored by: Florida Keys Council of the Arts and the Art in Public Places project Location: Outside the entrance of the Freeman Justice Center in Key West, Fla. Lead contractors: Steven Ochs, art professor at Southern Arkansas University in Magnolia and owner of Public Art Walks, and Gerald Taylor, owner of Images in Concrete, El Dorado, Ark. Scope of work: From concept to completion, create a culturally significant concrete mural for the entryway of the new Monroe County courthouse.
When Steven Ochs and Gerald Taylor won the contract to create a mural for the entryway of the Freeman Justice Center, the new Monroe County courthouse in Key West, Fla., the Arkansas artists were expected to capture the essence of the building's namesake in concrete.
The Freeman family is one of the most respected in Florida Keys history. From 1924 to 2000, six family members amassed 106 years of public service in a variety of elected offices, all without a blemish on their records.
Ochs and Taylor traveled to Key West and met with Dr. Shirley Freeman, former mayor of Key West and ex-county commissioner, to help them understand the legacy of her late husband, Billy Freeman Jr., who served for 34 years as a county commissioner, a Florida state representative and the local sheriff. At first, the sidewalk mural was going to focus on Billy Jr. alone.
However, Shirley eventually decided it would be better to highlight the accomplishments of all six Freeman public servants...
