Richard Beaulieu

Boynton Beach Community News August, 2000

Neighborhood Gallery
showcases local artists

By Shirley Green
Special to the Community News

It starts out as a bar of cold hard steel, and ends up as a tall, graceful sculpture reminiscent of colorful hair ribbons tossed in the wind. Richard Beau Lieu, 50, award-winning sculptor creates art from interesting materials like steel.

He comes by his love of steel naturally. "My family was in the steel industry for 100 years, so I'm at home around metal," he said. " I apprenticed at a bronze foundry, and I do bronzes as well. But I really prefer steel, first, because I like its availability, second, because I prefer doing the whole thing myself without having to contract with a foundry. This way I'm in control of the whole project, and I don't have to depend on anyone else to make it happen."

But the real reason he prefers working in steel is"... because I can build things as big as I want." Like his sculpture 'Liberty,' for example, which stands an imposing 40 feet tall and weighs seven and a half tons.

Palm Beach Post July, 2000

Outdoor gallery replaces
dump with industrial art

Neighborhood residents and
business Owners worked together to
clean up the site. Seventeen artists
display work at the outdoor gallery.

By Linda Haase
Palm Beach Post Staff Writer

Getting to this art gallery is like taking a trip down the yellow brick road. The narrow path is filled with the unknown. But at the end, there's a pot of gold – the Neighborhood Art Gallery.

Nearly every nook and granny is filled with delightful artwork – and this is not a stuffy lower-your-voice art gallery. It's outdoors and smack in the middle of an industrial park aptly named Industrial Avenue.

This gallery gives new meaning to industrial art. Six rusting mammoth grading machines are used for easels, trees serve as walls and the sky provides the lighting – until it gets dark and the lights are turned on. After all, this gallery is open until the wee hours.

The gallery began about two years ago when artist Richard Beau Lieu, who has a studio on Industrial, wanted to give the area some pizzazz, something that was missing when he set up shop 13 years ago. Other artists who had set up studios in the area joined the effort.

"IT was loaded with mechanics. The street was a catchall for abandoned cars, old mattresses and trash. People dumped their old fridges and everything else" Beau Lieu said.



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Blue-collar employees, sculptors turn eyesore into artsy landscape
By KARIN MEADOWS
Of The Associated Press

BOYNTON BEACH - The six yellow front-end loaders serve a new purpose these days. The once powerful, now rusty machines sit side by side in a parking lot where Ray Marcinkoski plucks their parts for repairs on modem dirt movers. But the grading company owner has to maneuver carefully around the machines their scoops are now easels for colorful 4-by-8 foot paintings in this industrial area turned artsy landscape by blue-collar workers and a sculptor.

Nearby, an urban roadside once littered with old mattresses, discarded refrigerators and mounds of trash now is lined with metal sculptures and other rustic art - a yellow chrome gear, marble totem poles and Picasso-like paintings by neighborhood children.

"There was old cars, refrigerators - you name it. Just imagine 600 yards of junk," said the gruff and tough-looking Marcinkoski, who two years ago made a deal with the City of Boynton Beach to supply dumpsters for the rubbish in exchange for his cleaning up of West Industrial Avenue. Marcinkoski was the catalyst for the beautification. He pushed around sand and dirt encroaching one side of the road to create a bank, then built a wooden fence as a backdrop and hauled in huge chunks of coral for decoration. He hauls in trees and plants he finds discarded on job sites and nurtures them into the bank alongside purchased flowers.

Meanwhile, Richard W. Beau Lieu, a sculptor whose work can be seen in galleries and public buildings across the nation, has turned his landlord's vision into a mission. Beau Lieu, owner of the Neighborhood Gallery next door to Marcinkoski's shop, commissioned artists to create metal sculptures and paintings on burlap and canvas for a streetside garden gallery in progress. The result is not a feminine display, or even reminiscent of most Florida gardens, which are lush and tropical.

The rugged, rocky landscape exudes a man's touch and is almost desert-like. The 60 pieces along the street include chrome bumper art in the shape of a cactus, a purple metal unicycle tucked between two

continued next column

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Below: The article as it appeared in the Palm Beach Post Press



In the newspaper article, Richard W. Beau Lieu, the sculptor and proprietor of Neighborhood Gallery, stands in front of his gallery recently in Boynton Beach.

scruffy trees and Jackson Pollack-style paintings by local artist Helen Kelsey. But it is the wildflowers growing among the sculptures and paintings that excite Beau Lieu the most. "You can see what nature is doing," Beau Lieu says as he points at a black metal sculpture tangled with wild red and white bleeding heart. Hot pink bougainviuea peaks over the wooden fence behind it.

At night, the view is different. The once dark street is now flooded with lights that illuminate the sculptures and paintings. A 10-foot post of metal recreated into birthday candle complete with frosting and a flame marks the entrance to Beau Lieu's gallery. Now, people stroll the street to view the art as late as 1 a.m. "The overall benefit is all of the neighbors have joined in," said a sculptor who goes only by the name Dextr. "People come by and say, 'Hey, I've got 100 plants,' or bring money to help out. This place was filled with rubbish. Now you hardly see a bottle on the side of the road."

The scoops of six front-end loaders are now easels for colorful 4-by-8 foot paintings in an industrial area in Boynton Beach, which has been transformed into an artsy landscape by blue-collar workers and some sculptors.





Email:

Neighborhood Gallery
422 West Industrial Avenue
Boynton Beach, Florida 33426

Please call for hours and directions.
Phone 561-736-8181

©2000 - 2005 Neighborhood Gallery

Palm Beach Post
January, 2001

ART & SOUL
Soaring to new heights

By Sue Kovach
First Sunday Edition

January 2001, The Palm Beach Post, Soaring to new heights by Sue Kovach. Rick Beau Lieu, 53, was born into a family of metalworkers in the tool and die business. But unlike the four generations preceding him,he was the first to take the skill to artistic heights---Literally. Beau Lieu is best known for his monumental metal sculptures, including Florida's largest outdoor sculpture, a 40-foot, 7-ton piece called Liberty. Creating sculpture is only part of Beau Lieu artistic life.He spends time in art education working with children and has received awards for that involvement. But his pet project is the Neighborhood Gallery, an art gallery that is literally a neighborhood, the once-rundown West Industrial Avenue area of Boynton Beach where his studio (and Liberty) is located.

Beau Lieu and others cleaned up the trash, installed fences, planted trees,and lined the streets with original paintings and sculptures. The neighborhood has recently been designated The Art District of Boynton Beach.
"I've been an artist for most of my life, and it's been very good," Beau Lieu reflects. For those just beginning to follow their creative muse, he notes that all budding artists have to pay their dues. You may encounter struggles, and you may be tempted to sit and wait for things to turn around. But creating the work can be its own reward." If you don't know what to do, just do what's in front of you," he advises.








NEIGHBORHOOD GALLERY
NOW A CITY LANDMARK
The City of Boynton Beach recently recognized the Neighborhood Gallery as a city landmark. We are proud of the new sign that was installed (below) to help direct traffic to us and are grateful to the city, the chamber and the community for their continued support.

Thanks from all of us at the Neighborhood Gallery!

DIRECTIONS:
Shown below is the new signage installed to help visitors find the Neighborhood Gallery from Boynton Beach Blvd easier. To get here, exit from Interstate 95 onto Boynton Beach Blvd. Head west one block and look for the sign on right that marks the entrance to the gallery on West Industrial Avenue. See you here!

Artists bring work to Boynton

By Carol Lewis
Special Correspondent

BOYNTON BEACH • Local artists are making more headway than the city in offering art in public places.

A group of artists has successfully turned one of the city's industrial streets formerly known only for its car repair shops, into the Boynton Beach Neighborhood Art District. But city officials haven't acted on recommendations from a committee formed to oversee the project.

"The idea was to create an area where people could go see art in public, sort of like a museum, and to give artists a place to exhibit without red tape," said sculptor Richard Beau Lieu, who directs the district, as well as the Boynton Beach Neighborhood Art Gallery there. "It's an industrial park, but it has become known as an art area because of the number of artists coming in and out."

City commissioners have taken steps to establish a more formal program and to get ideas about ordinances from other cities and presented findings to the City Commission in September 2001. The committee recommended commissioners create an arts commission for advice on art issues, to promote public art and suggest funding guidelines. But officials haven't acted on recommendations submitted by the committee, and the mayor admits it has been a low priority even though interest is high.






SELF-STARTER: Richard Beau Lieu, a sculptor, is director of the Boynton Beach Neighborhood Art District. "It's hard to imagine how it was down here," said Beau Lieu, who moved his studio to the avenue in 1987. "It was nothing more than a bunch of car repair garages." Staff photo/Carline Jean

South Florida
Sun Sentinel 2003

Art District Gaining Recognition

By SHAMERRA T. BROWN
Times2 STAFF WRITER

If you blink when driving down Boynton Beach Boulevard, you might miss one of the best kept secrets in the city.

The Neighborhood Art Gallery has been around since 1987, but is gaining more recognition these days. Richard Beau Lieu and a group of local artists have successfully turned one of the city's industrial streets, formerly known for car repair shops, into an art gallery.

Just two years ago, the city of Boynton Beach designated the area of West Industrial Avenue, the Boynton Beach Art District. "You turn onto the main drag, West Industrial Avenue and immediately start to see large metal sculptures," Richard Beau Lieu, the gallery's owner, said.

More than 20 artists have their work on display and for sale at the only art gallery in the city. Although not as visible as other local monuments, the gallery is creating a buzz by word of mouth.

"This place builds up Boynton's image. It's a secret little place, but we're seeing growth," artist Stan Sternbach said.

"Once we got it started, it mushroomed, " Marcinkoski said. "We all kind of work together on it."

Now the area is decorated with sculpture and artwork from some 17 artists that BeauLieu represents in his gallery. He's even designed whimsical directional signs, but can't keep them in place for long.

"We put out signs so people could find us, and they disappeared as fast as we could put them out," Beau Lieu said.

He has lighted the area, and encourages people to drive by at night.

While Christensen planted hardy plants like lantana that will grow in any soil, she was amazed that Marcinkoski had already transplanted palmettos on the three-block area. Palmettos are considered almost impossible to transplant.

"Out of the 20 we dug up from Overlook Road, we've only lost a couple of them," Marcinkoski said. "I've also put about I 00 trees out on that area, too."

Christensen wanted to put more trees and shrubs on the site, but the drought curtailed those plans.

"We had wanted to put in some oleander, but with the drought we decided to stick to the planters," she said."We put crinum lilies and lantana in those."

The Boynton Beach Garden Club members will continue their involvement with the art district for the foreseeable future. Next they plan to treat the weeds with herbicide; then they'll continue planting as soon as the rains begin.

"Once we were here on the site, we realized we'll stay with this," Christensen said.

With an ever-expanding garden in the future, Beau Lieu sees limitless possibilities for the industrial park's art district. Several people have mentioned the possibility of situating a restaurant adjacent to the art/sculpture garden, he said. He's also in the process of writing a federal grant application for funds to expand the project.

"Next we'll look at the adjacent land to expand," he said. "As this project moves along, anything could happen.

"It could take over this whole area," he said. "Really, it's a work in progress ... a piece of installation art."

IF YOU GO
WHAT: Boynton Beach Neighborhood Art District
WHERE:422 Industrial Ave.
WHEN: Indoor gallery open I 1 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday through
Saturday, and I I a.m. to 9 p.m.
Friday
INFO: Call 561-736-8181 or visit the Web site:









NEIGHBORHOOD GALLERY
NOW A CITY LANDMARK
The City of Boynton Beach

This is newly completed aluminum sculpture purchased by an american collector and installed at his estate. It has a high gloss jet black finish and I titled the piece the prophet.

The City of Boynton Beach installed three new public art pieces into it permanent collection Wednesday. The sculpture and paintings were installed in it's newly refurbished City Hall lobby. Richard Beau Lieu installed his abstract wooden wall sculpture on the staircase wall leading up to the second floor. Stan Sternbach's beach scene with lifeguard station was hung on the upper level of the lobby and Ralph Papa's Boynton Beach coastal seascape was installed on the ground floor. Several other art pieces are scheduled for installation during next week.

It was once part of the 1990 Center for Marine Conservation summer tour and Project Reef keeper effort to save Florida reef. Later it became part of a black tie fundraiser at the Cheeca lodge to fund the Dolphin Research Center in the Florida Keys and last but not least was used to raise fund for the rebuilding of Boynton oldest schoolhouse, has now been given a new pedestal and placed in the lobby of the Boynton Beach City House. The city hired a fabricator to build this pedestal and another artist to decorate it with painted sea grass. Hard to say if this old girl's work is done, only time will tell.

I have recently delivered a red abstract 7.5 foot sculpture to one of my oldest clients. Mr. and Mrs. Golden bought there first Beau Lieu sculpture over twenty years ago when both of my adult daughtors were still in high school. Artist always appreciate those who have supported there work through the years. My sincere thanks to the Golden. Rick Beau Lieu

Linda Stabile is a great patron and supporter of the art. I have known her for years and have installed many sculptures of my own and other artist in her sculpture garden. I recently installed an abstract wall sculpture from a collection of work I call swiggles. The sculpture is call flash point eclipse. Thank you Linda for your support. Rick Beau Lieu

The Ron Brasch Collection has been view in Museum across the United States. This is a brochure printed for a show at the Colorado Center for the Arts. Among the artist listed on this brochure are Pablo Picasso, Larry Rivers, Salvador Dali, Marc Chagall, Richard Beau Lieu and others.

The Ron Brasch Collection has been view in Museum across the United States. This is a brochure printed for a show at the Colorado Center for the Arts. Among the artist listed on this brochure are Pablo Picasso, Larry Rivers, Salvador Dali, Marc Chagall, Richard Beau Lieu and others.

Richard Beaulieu
Sculptor/ Artist/ Director of Boynton Beach Neighborhood Art District

Neighborhood Gallery
422 W. Industrial Ave.
Boynton Beach Florida 33426
Phone 561-736-8181
Fax 561-740-7742


From the French, Beau lieu means, literally, beautiful place. And it is both appropriate and ironic that it should. Richard Beau Lieu, an American Artist, founded Beau Lieu Sculpture Studios in 1984 in Boynton Beach, Florida.

For it is in this place, known only for the scenes and scents of common industry, that Richard Beau Lieu will create some of the finest sculptures and three dimensional, mixed media compositions available today. Beau Lieu's works can be seen in galleries, public buildings and institutions through out the world. His affiliation with international art organizations and National Environmental Groups is noteworthy. In 1989, he was the recipient of the Distinguished Florida Artist of the Year Award. He also received a 1990 award for Significant Contribution to the Arts in Education from the National Organization of Young Audiences and in addition received a 1991 Resident Artist Award for his work with high school students by the Palm Beach County School Department.
In 1986 he received a commission from the Starkoff Associates, that resulted in two monumental sculptures being installed on the grounds of the Arvida Executive Center in Boca Raton. In 1988, another commission resulted in the production of seven sculptures of a marine, or nautical theme, which were part of an underwater art exhibit to benefit The Center for Marine Conservation in Washington, D.C.
Schooled in realism, abstraction has afforded him creative license. Beau Lieu's most popular works range in size from two to twelve feet, though his Liberty, or Victory Over Communism, stands at over forty feet and weighs more than seven tons. Finished, but for its painting, it stands outside his studio wearing only a coat of primer. Where exactly, the idea for this work came from, not even the artist can say. It is certainly abstract -- as is most of his work, but not nearly as lyrical. The lion's share of Beau Lieu's work, which he opts to paint on primary and secondary colors, often interspersed with stainless steel and polychrome finishes, though fashioned of extremely dense and rigid materials, possess a delicate, even graceful quality.
Beau Lieu’s most recent commissions are the Boca Raton Community Hospital, Boca Raton , FL "Volunteer Tribute" dedicated in 1998 and the “Tribute To Volunteers” at the Veterans Hospital in Daytona Beach FL in 2002.

Richard Wilfred Beau Lieu
Sculptor/ Artist/ Director of Boynton Beach Neighborhood Art District

Industry : Fine art paintings and sculpture
Born : December 21, 1947, Holyoke, Massachusetts
Type Of Organization : Fine art gallery with a public outdoor sculpture garden and installation art project showing the work of over 30 artists
Major Product : One of a kind sculpture and paintings
Area Of Distribution : International (sold through website or at the gallery)
Expertise : Metal sculpture, acrylic and oil paintings, art restoration and preservation, outdoor art
University/Degree : B.F.A., 1985; M.F.A.,1990, Shaftesbury University, London, England
Honors/Awards : Distinguished Florida Artist of the Year 1989; Significant contribution to art and education, Palm Beach School Dept. 1990; Significant contribution to the Magic of Art, Young Audiences 1991; Tribute to Volunteers, Boca Raton Community Hospital 1998; N.A.R.P. Cultural Council Grant Recipient 1999; Outstanding Artist and Designers of the 20th Century 2000; Decree of Merit, International Biographical Centre, Cambridge, England 2001; Meritorious Achievement in Art and Education, American Biographical Society 2001; The Mike Ryan Memorial, A Tribute to Veteran Hospital Volunteers, 2002
Affiliations: Faculty 1987-89, Armory School of Visual Arts, West Palm Beach, FL ; Sculpture Selection Committee, City of Delray Beach, FL; Fine Art Advisory Board, Northwood University, West Palm Beach, FL: Artist in Residency, Atlantic High School, Delray Beach , FL; Member, International Biographical Society; Board of Advisors, International Biographical Centre, Cambridge, England: Marine Art Tour, Center For Marine Conservation, Washington , D.C.; Member, Palm Beach County Cultural Council; Member, Boca Raton Museum; Member, Smithsonian Institute; Judge 1992-Present, Meet Me Downtown Annual Art Competition, Boca Raton Chamber of Commerce, Boca Raton, FL; Judge 1992-1995, Delray Affair Art Competition, Delray Beach Chamber of Commerce, Delray Beach, FL; Judge 2001 Annual Florida Festival Association Poster Competition; Judge 2004, Boynton Beach, FL/Qufu, China Sister Cites Young Artists Competition, Boynton Beach, FL; Vice Chairman, 2004-2006 Chairman, 2006-2007 Boynton Beach Art Commission Board, Boynton Beach, FL

E-Mail :
Web :

Art is made from dreams, and visions, and things not known, and least of all from things that can be said. It comes from the inside of who you are when you face yourself. It is an inner declaration of purpose; it is a factor which determines an artist identity.

L'art est fait à partir des rêves, et des visions, et des choses non connues, et mineurs de tous des choses qui peuvent être dites. Il vient de l'intérieur de qui vous êtes quand vous vous faites face. C'est une déclaration intérieure
debut ; c'est un facteur qui détermine une identité d'artiste.

El arte se hace de sueños, y las visiones, y las cosas no sabidas, y lo menos de todos de las cosas que pueden ser dichas. Viene del interior de quiénes usted es cuando usted se hace frente. Es un declaración interno del propósito; es un factor que determina una identidad del artista.

L'arte è fatta dai sogni e le visioni e cose conosciute e minime di tutti dalle cose che possono essere dette. Viene dalla parte interna di chi siete quando vi affrontate. È una dichiarazione interna di scopo; è un fattore che determina un'identità dell'artista.

Kunst wird von den Träumen und Anblicke gebildet, und nicht die bekannten Sachen und wenige von allen von den Sachen, die besagt sein können. Sie kommt vom Innere von, wem Sie sind, wenn Sie sich gegenüberstellen. Es ist eine innere Erklärung des Zweckes; es ist ein Faktor, der eine Künstleridentität feststellt.

Papa Fine Art Gallery, New York/ Florida

Art For Impact, corporate fine art gallery, Palm Beach


Neighborhood Fine Art Gallery, Boynton Beach Florida


Urs Fine Art Gallery, Palm Beach Florida

Artcetera Gallery, Delray Beach Florida

Gallery at Turnberry, Miami

Pooler Fnie Art Gallery, Rodeo Drive, Beverly Hills

Honors/Awards : Distinguished Florida Artist of the Year 1989; Significant contribution to art and education, Palm Beach School Dept. 1990; Significant contribution to the Magic of Art, Young Audiences 1991; Tribute to Volunteers, Boca Raton Community Hospital 1998; N.A.R.P. Cultural Council Grant Recipient 1999; Outstanding Artist and Designers of the 20th Century 2000; Decree of Merit, International Biographical Centre, Cambridge, England 2001; Meritorious Achievement in Art and Education, American Biographical Society 2001; The Mike Ryan Memorial, A Tribute to Veteran Hospital Volunteers, 2002, International Biographical Centre Research Council, Cambrige, England

Exhibits of
Rick Beau Lieu

Museum of Art, Palm Beach Community College
Large Scale Sculpture exhibit 1993

Dolphin Research Center, Annual Benefit sculpture exhibit.
Works of Richard Beau Lieu and Peter Ehrlick 1991

75th Anniversary and Diamond Jubilee, City of Delray
Richard Beau Lieu one man show 1991

Center for Marine Conservation, Washington, D.C.
1990 Art Tour, Opus Series

Commissioned pieces by Starkoff Associates, Inc.
Eclipse, 1986

Armory School of Visual Arts
Member Faculty 1986-89

Northwood Institute Visual Arts Committee Member
Palm Beach, Florida

Art Against Aids, Positive Links
Palm Beach, Florida 1996

Veterans Memorial, National Guard Station
Massechusetts, 1995

Palm Beach Gardens, Garden Arts Program
Internatinal Primitivism Exhibit

Historical Society of Boynton Beach
Old School House Exhibit, 1996

City of Delray Beach
Sculpture Selection Committee



Fine Art Galleries

Gemini Gallery
Palm Beach, Florida

Heartly Gallery
Winter Park, Florida

H.L. Stein Gallery
Atlanta, Georgia

Martin Gallery
Palm Beach, Florida

Tilghman Gallery
Boca Raton, Florida

T. Lawrence Gallery
Beverly Hills, California - Melbourne, Florida


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Beau Lieu Studios and Neighborhood Gallery
Phone 561-736-8181
Send email to
422 West Industrial Avenue
Boynton Beach, Florida 33426