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The Appleton Museum of Art, ��������, announces “Finding Beauty,” a unique exhibition in partnership with Ocala Civic Theatre that explores creativity and the spirit of collaboration.

On view May 12-Jan. 15, 2023, “Finding Beauty” merges costume drawings and more from OCT’s production of “Beauty and the Beast” with the objects from the Appleton collection that inspired them. Based on Rococo-style works in the collection, OCT’s costumes borrow patterns, colors and motifs from objects such as a Louis XIV-type clock and wardrobe, as well as fine porcelain objects and elaborate candelabra.

Along with showcasing the inspiration objects, the exhibition also highlights the creative design process and how a static object, such as a clock, can eventually become the costume for a living actor to magically transform into a character such as Cogsworth. The exhibition also includes set photos and sketches by OCT’s award-winning costume designer Eryn Brooks Brewer, a touch table of fabrics and costume embellishments, a photo op and more. After June 5, a selection of costumes from the actual performance will also be on view.

“Finding Beauty” is a true labor of love with our friends and neighbors at OCT,” said Patricia Tomlinson, Appleton Museum curator of exhibitions. “The marriage of the Appleton’s artworks and Eryn’s brilliant costumes has been a delight to bring to life. We are excited to present the beauty of collaboration to our members, patrons and viewers!”

Appleton Director’s Circle members are invited to the VIP Reception on Thursday, May 12, from 5:30-7:30 pm. The event will be a French-inspired evening with hors d’oeuvres, music and a special preview of the exhibition. RSVP required to Colleen Harper, harperc@cf.edu, or 352-291-4455, ext. 1831.

OCT’s production of “Beauty and the Beast” runs May 12-June 5; tickets go on sale April 11. Performances are Thursdays and Fridays at 7:30 p.m., Saturdays at 2 p.m. and 7:30 p.m., and Sundays at 2 p.m. The theatre is located next to the Appleton at 4337 E. Silver Springs Blvd. For more information about OCT or to purchase tickets to “Beauty and the Beast,” visit or call 352-236-2274.

Those with tickets to “Beauty and the Beast” may visit the Appleton “Finding Beauty” exhibition (and all galleries) one time, free of charge, from May 12, 2022-Jan. 15, 2023. Proof of tickets must be presented upon visiting the museum.

The Appleton Museum, Artspace and Store are open Tuesday-Saturday, 10 a.m.-5 p.m. and Sunday, noon-5 p.m. A campus of the ��������, the Appleton Museum of Art is located at 4333 E. Silver Springs Blvd., Ocala, east of downtown on SR 40 (exit 352 east off I-75 or exit 268 west off I-95). Parking is free. For more information, call 352-291-4455 or visit

The Appleton Museum of Art, ��������, announces the display of the recent acquisition “Ships,” 1898, by legendary American artist Edward Hopper.

The painting, on display in the second-floor Maritime Gallery through the end of the year, is extraordinary due to the fact that Hopper painted it when he was only 16 years old. The work depicts a scene of both sailing and coal-fired ships on the water and is one of the artist’s earliest works.

Hopper is probably best known for his landmark painting “Nighthawks,” a study of big-city isolation that shows solitary figures in a late-night diner. Although traditionally focused on clean lines and minimal focal points, in “Ships,” the young artist’s experimentation with spacing, composition and line is evident in the solitary ship in the foreground and the busy collection of ships in the background. Eventually, these extraneous details will be eliminated and the compositional simplicity that Hopper is known for will emerge.

Edward Hopper was born in 1882 into an educated, middle-class family in Nyack, New York. From a young age, Hopper exhibited creative talent and was encouraged to pursue his artistic education by his family. Interestingly, his love of the sea and the ships that sailed it conjured an early dream of becoming a ship’s architect. After graduating from high school, he entered the New York School of Art and Design, where he studied with impressionist William Merritt Chase and Robert Henri of the Ashcan School. This thought-provoking juxtaposition of styles led Hopper to his early Impressionistic color choices and focus on light that converged with his interest in portraying realistic subject matter. After marrying fellow painter Josephine Nivison in 1924, Hopper’s career took off, due in large part to his wife’s art world connections. Working as a professional fine artist throughout the 1930s, and having the honor of a one-man retrospective at the Museum of Modern Art in New York, Hopper created some of his most renowned work in the 1940s. Although his popularity as an artist dwindled somewhat with the rise of the Abstract Impressionists during the 1950s, Hopper continued to have retrospectives at the world’s most prestigious museums. He died on May 15, 1967, at the age of 84, and bequeathed his work to the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York City.

The Appleton Museum, Artspace and Store are open Tuesday-Saturday, 10 a.m.-5 p.m. and Sunday, noon-5 p.m. A campus of the ��������, the Appleton Museum of Art is located at 4333 E. Silver Springs Blvd., Ocala, east of downtown on SR 40 (exit 352 east off I-75 or exit 268 west off I-95). Parking is free. For more information, call 352-291-4455 or visit

Learn more about the ��������’s bachelor’s degree options at an information session on Monday, April 11, at 5:30 p.m. in the Ewers Century Center, Room 107.

Advisors, administrators and faculty will give details about specialization options, program design, affordability and admissions.

��������’s Bachelor of Applied Science in Business and Organizational Management degree allows students to specialize in Accounting, Agribusiness Management, Business, Equine Studies, Health Care Management, Logistics and Supply Chain Management, Management Information Systems, or Public Safety Administration.

Visit to register for this Zoom event. To learn more about ��������, visit .

The finale of the �������� Ira Holmes International Film Series’ 60th anniversary season will be a bonus short film festival on Tuesday, April 12.

The highlights of the festival will be two of 1962’s best short films: “Vive Le Tour,” Louis Malle’s energetic evocation of the Tour de France, and “La Jetée,” a tale of time travel told in still images, which remains one of the most influential, radical science fiction films ever made.

Films will be shown at 2 p.m. at the Appleton Museum of Art, 4333 E. Silver Springs Blvd., and at 7 p.m., at the �������� Ocala Campus, 3001 S.W. College Road, Building 8, Room 110. Films at the Ocala Campus are free and open to the public. Films at the Appleton are free to all museum and film series members; nonmembers pay museum admission. Films may contain mature content.

For more details, visit cf.edu/filmseries.

Makayla Cox of Ocala was named the New Century Workforce Pathway Scholar and will receive a $1,250 scholarship sponsored by the Coca-Cola Foundation.

Cox is one of seven �������� students recently named to the All-Florida Academic Team. She was the state’s top-scoring student in the All-USA Academic Team competition, which drew more than 2,000 applicants.

“We are so proud of Makayla,” said Dr. Allan Danuff, associate vice president of Arts and Sciences and Phi Theta Kappa advisor. “She’s excelling in ��������’s rigorous Associate Degree Nursing program and is a Phi Theta Kappa honor society student, which requires at least a 3.5 GPA. She was selected for the New Century Workforce Pathway Scholarship and the All-Florida Academic Team not just for her academic performance, but for leadership and community service as well.”

For more information about the ��������, visit . For more information on the New Century Pathway Scholarship, visit .

The beloved characters from the “Peanuts” comic strip will come to life when �������� Visual and Performing Arts students present the musical “You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown” April 7-10.

Performances times are 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Friday and Saturday, April 7-9, and 3 p.m. Sunday, April 10, at the Dassance Fine Arts Center, 3001 S.W. College Road, Ocala.

“Audiences have been enjoying these iconic characters and the show’s universal themes of friendship, fun and finding happiness for decades,” said Nonalee Davis, �������� Theatre instructor and the play’s director. “Our production features 12 �������� students performing more than a dozen Tony Award-winning musical numbers. It will be a fun experience for theatregoers of all ages.”

Tickets are $12 for adults and $6 for non-�������� students and can be purchased at ��������.edu/Musical or by calling 352-873-5810. Tickets are free for �������� students, faculty and staff with valid I.D.

For more information about �������� events, visit .

In the Balcony Gallery for Florida Artists, Benson explores the world and what it means to be human through his meditative black-and-white photographs of everyday people and scenes.

“There is something extraordinary about finding magic in things, places, people and processes never intended to carry any grand significance,” Benson said. “It’s long been known that photographing something places importance on the subject — even the mundane.” Taken throughout the world, his photographs are influenced by the existentialist writings of Camus, Kafka and Dostoevsky.

Benson is a professor of Photography and Video and chair of the Southeast Center for Photographic Studies, School of Photography at Daytona State College. He holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the College for Creative Studies and Master of Fine Arts from Cranbrook Academy of Art in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan. He is the recipient of a National Endowment for the Arts/ArtsMidwest Fellowship. His work is represented in numerous collections, including the Museum of Fine Art-Houston; Detroit Institute of Arts; Centre Georges Pompidou; and the Museet for Fotokunst in Denmark. His works have been displayed worldwide in Argentina, South Korea, Syria, Poland and China.

The Appleton Museum, Artspace and Store are open Tuesday-Saturday, 10 a.m.-5 p.m. and Sunday, noon-5 p.m. A campus of the ��������, the Appleton Museum of Art is located at 4333 E. Silver Springs Blvd., Ocala, east of downtown on SR 40 (exit 352 east off I-75 or exit 268 west off I-95). Parking is free. For more information, call 352-291-4455 or visit

John Ash, associate professor of music and department chair for Visual and Performing Arts at the ��������, will be honored with the American Association of Community Colleges 2022 Dale P. Parnell Faculty Distinction Recognition at their annual conference in New York City in May. Ash directs the college’s bands and wind symphony, teaches music classes and recently served as the Faculty Senate president for two years.

The award, named after former AACC President and CEO Dale P. Parnell, recognizes individuals making a difference in the classroom.

“Professor Ash always puts our students first and has been a great asset to the ��������,” said Dr. Mark Paugh, vice president for Academic Affairs. “Throughout the pandemic, he has led his department to safely offer musical and theatrical instruction and performances for our students.”

For more information about the ��������, visit ��������.edu. For more information about the AACC, visit .

Are you an Emergency Medical Technician who’s ready to take your career to the next level? The �������� is now accepting applications for the next Paramedic class at our Citrus Campus, which will begin May 11.

“There is a huge need for certified paramedics in Citrus County, and our graduates are in high demand,” said Rod McGinnes, associate dean of Health Sciences and EMS program manager. “�������� is the only nationally accredited Paramedic program in Marion, Citrus and Levy counties. Our 12-month, hands-on program was designed to accommodate EMTs’ shift schedules so they can continue to work as first responders while we train them in advanced treatment skills such as medication administration, airway skills and management of critical trauma, and prepare them to pass the state and national certification exams.”

Prospective Paramedic students must be currently licensed Florida EMTs and must first apply to the �������� at . Prospective students are encouraged to view the virtual EMS information session at . Paramedic program applications, available at , are due by April 15.

For more information, visit or call 352-873-5800.