THE NEIGHBORHOOD: Sanford
THE PLACE: Back in 2007, a folk artist named Mr. Imagination cemented mementos from Sanford residents into the wall of the Jeanine Taylor Folk Art Gallery on 1st Street. Hundreds of items were plastered onto the wall during the three-week creation process. It’s since become an open air time capsule and one of Sanford’s most treasured art installations.
FUN FACT: Taylor placed her late husband’s watch into the wall. It had ticked for more than 25 years after her husband’s death but the day Mr. Imagination added it to the memory wall, it stopped running. Taylor thinks it was a sign that she was able to move on.
QUOTABLE: “It’s a piece of community art that is a time capsule,” Jeanine Taylor said.
CHECK IT OUT: You can see the memory wall anytime outside the gallery on 1st Street in historic downtown Sanford. There is a short bio of Mr. Imagination and explanation of the project in the gallery window. There’s also an “I Spy” game for kids to locate items within the wall. If you want to stop inside the gallery, make sure to give the gallery’s unofficial greeter Louie the French Bulldog a pat on the head. Come watch various artists create in the space or get crafty in a workshop. They’re open Tuesday-Friday from 10am-6pm, Saturday 10am-9pm and Sunday 12pm-5pm.