My Art Basel weekend started with a pit stop in St. Petersburg to catch the opening of family friend Piotr Janowski’s exhibit opening at the Museum of Fine Arts there. We (well my mom especially) have known Piotr for years, so we figured we’d take advantage of being in the state to see his work firsthand.

My mom and I flew into Tampa and I was immediately encouraged by the blue water and green land.

Unfortunately, as we landed we dipped under the clouds and found that the weather was a bit gloomy and not as warm as I had hoped for. But to embrace being along the coast, we went for lunch where I ordered half the menu, including oysters, shrimp and clam chowder.

The beach at St. Petersburg

The beach at St. Petersburg

We headed to the Museum of Fine Arts that evening for the exhibit opening and were greeted by Piotr’s eye-catching aluminum-wrapped palm trees which line the front of the museum.

Piotr started getting national and international press coverage earlier this year after wrapping his Tarpon Springs home and surrounding palm trees in aluminum wrap. All that led to this exhibition – it just goes to prove that as an artist, it can sometimes be surprising what one thing finally breaks through and catches peoples’ attention. Regardless, my mom and I had a great time checking out the exhibit and then toasting his accomplishment at dinner.

You can check out Piotr’s Curiosity exhibit now through February 14th.