If you want to learn more about Tampa’s unique history and culture, but you’re more of a visual learner, we’ve got just the thing for you. In 2003, the City of Tampa’s Public Art Program gave local artist Lynn Ash a task: Create a piece of art to showcase the cultural landscape and history of the 813.
Three years later, Ash’s 4x8-ft mural, named “The Story of Tampa,” was unveiled after he studied hundreds of photographs and met with countless community leaders to craft his masterpiece. The result? Nearly 200 vignettes containing images, icons, symbols, and famous faces associated with Tampa within a border made of 50+ images.
Here are some of our favorite aspects of the piece:
- A quick glance will have you dreaming of the high seas. Fictional pirate Jose Gaspar dominates the center of the canvas, a sword outstretched in one hand, and the other holding onto a ship’s roped ladder. You may recognize his ship by the left border from Gaspy celebrations.
- Even before the Bucs’ second Super Bowl win and the Bolts’ recent back-to-back Stanley Cups, the spirit of Champa Bay was alive and well. Peep the famous trophies at the mid-to-bottom right.
- Foodies may recognize a couple of iconic local spots. The Columbia Restaurant is to the right of center at the top of the artwork, next to a visage of Cesar Gonzmart — an in-law to the generations-old family-run eatery — playing the violin. The scrumptious Goody Goody Burgers is in the bottom left corner.
Want to get a better look? The city has an informative breakdown of the mural. And if that’s still not enough, the mural is on show at the Tampa Municipal Office Building inside Old City Hall, open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday.
