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Best Radio Station

Anything not owned by Clear Channel

South Florida radio sucks. We'll say it again -- the radio down here flat-out sucksssssss. It's so completely worthless, so dominated by industry whores, payola, corporate streamlining, unfettered monopolization, dumb DJs, and strictly limited playlists that hardly anyone bothers to listen to it anymore. The best bet on the LCD dial remains the underground pirate stations that are still lashed to their own narrow MOs, naturally, but have so much more to offer in terms of local flavor and personality. The illegal reggae station 90.9 remains high on our list, but the regional roundup of radio outlaws changes as often as the weather. Lock it!

Best Radio Station

Anything not owned by Clear Channel

South Florida radio sucks. We'll say it again -- the radio down here flat-out sucksssssss. It's so completely worthless, so dominated by industry whores, payola, corporate streamlining, unfettered monopolization, dumb DJs, and strictly limited playlists that hardly anyone bothers to listen to it anymore. The best bet on the LCD dial remains the underground pirate stations that are still lashed to their own narrow MOs, naturally, but have so much more to offer in terms of local flavor and personality. The illegal reggae station 90.9 remains high on our list, but the regional roundup of radio outlaws changes as often as the weather. Lock it!

Best Radio Program

Sunday Blues with Dar

Earlier this year, weekend DJs at WKPX-FM (88.5) were shut down for good, replaced by soulless tapes set on repeat. Except, however, "Sunday Blues with Dar." From 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Sundays, blues aficionados can still get their fix, courtesy of Darlene McCauley. When DJs were told they either had to get enough sponsorship cash to justify their existence or else hit the road, Dar somehow pulled it off when everyone else went the way of the dinosaurs. Dedicated listeners come naturally when one's radio show happens to be the only outlet in the area for traditional blues. Keep wailin', Dar!

Best Radio Program

Sunday Blues with Dar

Earlier this year, weekend DJs at WKPX-FM (88.5) were shut down for good, replaced by soulless tapes set on repeat. Except, however, "Sunday Blues with Dar." From 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Sundays, blues aficionados can still get their fix, courtesy of Darlene McCauley. When DJs were told they either had to get enough sponsorship cash to justify their existence or else hit the road, Dar somehow pulled it off when everyone else went the way of the dinosaurs. Dedicated listeners come naturally when one's radio show happens to be the only outlet in the area for traditional blues. Keep wailin', Dar!

Best Artist

Sally Ordile

Last year, Sally Ordile was like many a South Floridian, a transplant from the north, in her case from New York City to Boynton Beach. She had been practicing art a scant half a dozen years, and then something remarkable happened: At age 62, she was discovered. Palm Beach Institute of Contemporary Art's director, Michael Rush, and PBICA Assistant Curator Jody Servon included the budding artist in their flashy "Sculpture Now" show, which reasserted the relevance of contemporary sculpture. Ordile was the only South Florida-based artist represented in the show, a detail especially notable given her choice of medium. Although Ordile also produces prints and encaustic, her most powerful work takes advantage of things most South Florida homeowners consider an annoyance: those bulky stalks and husks that peel off from the larger varieties of palms, littering lawns and streets and occasionally inflicting damage on cars. In Ordile's hands, they become things of beauty, smoothed and painted and adorned with bits of fabric and other items. No other area artist has so thoroughly integrated the readily available materials of her adopted home into her art with such force and originality.

Best Artist

Sally Ordile

Last year, Sally Ordile was like many a South Floridian, a transplant from the north, in her case from New York City to Boynton Beach. She had been practicing art a scant half a dozen years, and then something remarkable happened: At age 62, she was discovered. Palm Beach Institute of Contemporary Art's director, Michael Rush, and PBICA Assistant Curator Jody Servon included the budding artist in their flashy "Sculpture Now" show, which reasserted the relevance of contemporary sculpture. Ordile was the only South Florida-based artist represented in the show, a detail especially notable given her choice of medium. Although Ordile also produces prints and encaustic, her most powerful work takes advantage of things most South Florida homeowners consider an annoyance: those bulky stalks and husks that peel off from the larger varieties of palms, littering lawns and streets and occasionally inflicting damage on cars. In Ordile's hands, they become things of beauty, smoothed and painted and adorned with bits of fabric and other items. No other area artist has so thoroughly integrated the readily available materials of her adopted home into her art with such force and originality.

Best Art Gallery

Carone Gallery

Hard times for art galleries these days. In a sluggish economy, art, for many people, becomes an expendable luxury -- something to look at, maybe, but not to buy. For those with weak willpower, even looking may become too great a temptation to risk. And so established galleries close; new ones fail to materialize. The Carone Gallery is different. Matthew Carone runs a serious gallery for serious collectors: so serious, in fact, that the gallery, just off Las Olas Boulevard, is open by appointment only. No waltzing in off the street to browse. But Carone, himself a widely respected painter who had a small, excellent one-man show at the Boca Raton Museum of Art last year, is important for another reason. For the past two years, he has joined Susan Buzzi and the Broward Art Guild in saving the Hortt Competition after it was abandoned by Fort Lauderdale's Museum of Art. The guild's gallery was a woefully inadequate display space for the large show, so Carone graciously volunteered his gallery. For that alone, the area arts community should be eternally grateful to him.

Best Art Gallery

Carone Gallery

Hard times for art galleries these days. In a sluggish economy, art, for many people, becomes an expendable luxury -- something to look at, maybe, but not to buy. For those with weak willpower, even looking may become too great a temptation to risk. And so established galleries close; new ones fail to materialize. The Carone Gallery is different. Matthew Carone runs a serious gallery for serious collectors: so serious, in fact, that the gallery, just off Las Olas Boulevard, is open by appointment only. No waltzing in off the street to browse. But Carone, himself a widely respected painter who had a small, excellent one-man show at the Boca Raton Museum of Art last year, is important for another reason. For the past two years, he has joined Susan Buzzi and the Broward Art Guild in saving the Hortt Competition after it was abandoned by Fort Lauderdale's Museum of Art. The guild's gallery was a woefully inadequate display space for the large show, so Carone graciously volunteered his gallery. For that alone, the area arts community should be eternally grateful to him.

Best Museum in Broward

Art and Culture Center of Hollywood

Not so long ago, the Art and Culture Center of Hollywood seemed to have fallen into the doldrums. After the departure of an especially adventurous curator (Laurence Pamer), the museum lacked direction and, more important, vision. But then, new curator Samantha Salzinger arrived, and the place has been on a roll ever since. Salzinger's "Fat Painting" show was a defiant celebration of the enduring influence of abstract expressionism that left some critics (although not ours) scratching their heads. "Modus Operandi" ventured even further with its eclectic blend of photography, mixed-media works, and installations, including one -- Bill Burke's Thin Spaces -- that turned a whole gallery of the museum into an alien environment engaging all the senses. Most recently, Salzinger snagged Pamela Joseph's traveling exhibition "The Sideshow of the Absurd," an extended multimedia installation of carnival-inspired (and feminist-tinged) pieces that was easily one of the most bizarre shows of the past year. Let's hope the Art and Culture Center is brave enough to let Salzinger continue her winning streak.

Best Museum in Broward

Art and Culture Center of Hollywood

Not so long ago, the Art and Culture Center of Hollywood seemed to have fallen into the doldrums. After the departure of an especially adventurous curator (Laurence Pamer), the museum lacked direction and, more important, vision. But then, new curator Samantha Salzinger arrived, and the place has been on a roll ever since. Salzinger's "Fat Painting" show was a defiant celebration of the enduring influence of abstract expressionism that left some critics (although not ours) scratching their heads. "Modus Operandi" ventured even further with its eclectic blend of photography, mixed-media works, and installations, including one -- Bill Burke's Thin Spaces -- that turned a whole gallery of the museum into an alien environment engaging all the senses. Most recently, Salzinger snagged Pamela Joseph's traveling exhibition "The Sideshow of the Absurd," an extended multimedia installation of carnival-inspired (and feminist-tinged) pieces that was easily one of the most bizarre shows of the past year. Let's hope the Art and Culture Center is brave enough to let Salzinger continue her winning streak.

Best Of Broward-Palm Beach®

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