Visual Magic at Museum Plaza with Friends of Downtown
Date Posted: Aug 29, 2023
Friends of Downtown is planning a dazzling display in the Pensacola sky for Foo Foo Fest
Friends of Downtown is no stranger to Foo Foo Fest. The nonprofit extension of the Downtown Improvement Board, Friends of Downtown is a longtime staple of the festival and for good reason: The organization has brought some of Foo’s most Instagram-worthy moments over the years—crowd favorites such as Umbrella Sky and last year’s Bubble Alley.
This year, Friends of Downtown is bringing awe-inspiring artwork to Foo Foo Fest’s 10th anniversary with another fabulous art installation: Magic Carpet.
Magic Carpet will feature upwards of 48,000 translucent rectangles—all in a variety of colors that have been stitched together with wire filament—high above Museum Plaza in the heart of historic downtown Pensacola.
“We are so grateful to get another year as a grant recipient to bring this to Pensacola,” says Walker Wilson of Friends of Downtown. “The transparency of the colorful tiles will allow it to look as if the colors are coming all the way down to the ground. We think it’s going to be a real Instagram moment.”
The mosaic was created by internationally-renowned ImpactPlan Art Productions, a creative company based in Portugal and the creative mind behind the ever-popular Umbrella Sky installation. Magic Carpet is planned to cover approximately 10,000 square feet above Museum Plaza, which Friends of Downtown believes will work better than in previous years. “Having it over a park rather than a road means no streets have to be shut down and it gives people the ability to hang out underneath it and enjoy it for a longer period of time,” Walker explains.
With this year’s art installation over the park, Friends of Downtown is also hoping to add some other elements over Foo Foo Fest’s 12-day celebration that encourage hanging out under the Magic Carpet. “It’s all still in the works, but we’re hoping to activate the space with a variety of options, whether it’s music or free yoga classes, or having a food truck come down so that people can enjoy lunch and the view,” Walker says.
In addition to a great photo for social media or fun time spent outside, Friends of Downtown is also hoping Magic Carpet—which will be up the entire run of the festival—provides attendees with another great reason to come check out all that downtown Pensacola and Foo Foo Fest has to offer. “We view the art installation as the front door into Foo Foo Fest,” Walker says. “It’s something to add to the allure of downtown and is just another reason to come down and visit the shops and restaurants and the many productions going on. There are so many great events going on over the course of the festival. We just want Magic Carpet to add to what is sure to be a fantastic 12 days.”