Marina Park: From Russia With Love
The city of Ventura has long been a community focused on art and creation, attracting talent from around the world. The community’s passion for creative work has been perpetuated by the formation of grassroots efforts like the Ventura Public Art Program, Working Artists Ventura, and Green Art People – just to name a few. Organizations like these provide resources for creative expression. However, in trying economic times, a few angelic individuals have taken matters into their own hands and have sparked a citywide benefactor beautification revolution. Inspired and funded by local residents and supported by land locations provided by the city, these individuals are creating a rapidly growing trend of Public/Private collaboration to provide the city with newfound places and pieces of beauty.
There is no better example of citizens coming together in the name of art than The Mermaid of Soter Point located in Marina Park. Standing approximately 25-feet tall, she prominently greets those entering the Ventura Harbor by sea or those taking a leisurely stroll down Pierpont Beach. Donated by Alec Beneke, an emigrant from the former Soviet Union, the nymph has become endearingly known to some as the City’s “Statue of Liberty” as she stands proudly at the point playing her flute enticingly, like one of Odysseus’ sirens. Created in 2009, the tall bronze sculpture has a creation story almost as equally beautiful as herself.
The story begins with Sam Povar, a retired resident of Pierpont Beach. Following his wife’s death, Povar wanted to do something special to preserve her legacy. He approached the city with an idea to collaborate on a restoration venture of city owned land to build a memoriam, the first of its kind. “Basically I made the offer as a private citizen to take city property and improve it,” said Povar. After working out the complex logistics of private planning on public land, Povar Plaza became a reality. Four park benches and a restored pedestrian path erected from rubble, each inscribed with a engraved bronze plaque, celebrating qualities of his late wife: “Beauty”, “Strength”, “Intelligence”, and “Gracious”.
Then the idea took root. Andy Soter, a long time friend of Povar, was encouraged to dedicate a similar project while mourning the loss of his daughter. Soter, also a Pierpont resident, set his sites on a dilapidated Marina Park. With the help of his friends and the city, the project was in motion. Enter Alec Benke. Benke, who emigrated from Kazakhstan to the United States after the Cold War, was put in touch with the two philanthropists after attempting to donate his large bronze statute to the city. When Soter and Povar viewed the mermaid that had been sitting awkwardly in Benke’s backyard, it was nothing short of fate. The hidden treasure had found its true home.
Surrounded by benches, paving stones, native grasses and plants, Soter Point provides a valuable public resource for those looking for a serene locale to take in a sunset while tasting the sweet, salty air. The tall mermaid, sitting atop a stone base built by Benke, is an ode to the courageous individuals that made it possible, and to the people they loved. They hope others will follow their lead, as more than three-dozen additional sites have been identified and lay in wait for the next good-hearted individual with a special connection to their community.
The beautiful bronze maiden is truly breathtaking. Build atop a circular pedestal; the viewer is blessed with an inspiring view from about every angle, adjusting for a ocean or mountain backdrop. Two bronze plaques dedicate the work, one reading “From Russia With Love”, the other this story of inspiration and an excerpt from Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream. The pathway and cement benches surrounding her are aesthetically placed and heavily used. One cannot sit and take in the sight and senses of the sea without falling into a meditative trance.
