Walker adds flair to Collection Cafe
For those who may have been wondering who has been putting together the professionally designed Christmas window display at The Collection Mall & Cafe for the last few years, the answer is rooted right here in Warren County.
Warren County native and former resident Jerry Walker is responsible for the beautiful and artistically arranged seasonal decorations at the downtown eatery and antique store.
Walker, the son of Herbert and Iris Walker, grew up locally and graduated from Warren County Senior High. His flair for design manifested itself early when, while still in high school, he apprenticed for a time as a floral designer at McMinnville Flower Shop before leaving in 1984 to attend art school.
“I’d been interested in flower design and interior design,” he said, “and then I just wanted to get a degree and learn to do different things.”
He attended the Ringling School of Art and Design in Sarasota, Fla., where he studied painting and sculpture, graduating in 1987. The school, established in 1931, has become an internationally recognized college of art and design with more than 1,000 students from 42 states and 47 countries. Due to Ringling’s influence, and generosity, Sarasota has become one of the major centers of art in the nation.
“They have one of the United States’ largest fine-art museums,” Walker said, “which is called the Ringling Museum because the land and the museum was donated by John Ringling. It was built by the money from the circus.”
Interestingly, Walker provides a local connection to Miami Dolphins football due to his association to the team’s owners.
“I work for the people who own the Miami Dolphins, Mr. and Mrs. Wayne Huizenga, who are also the owners of Blockbuster Video,” Walker said. Walker does design work for the family and the company he is employed by is owned by family member Elizabeth Huizenga Buntrock.
Due to his association with the Huizengas, Walker has done seasonal design work on some of the finest homes in the area as part of his job with Flowers and Found Objects.
But Walker hasn’t forgotten his Tennessee roots, returning each year to visit his parents and devote his considerable design talents to The Collection Mall & Cafe, where his mother, Iris, has her own section called Iris’ Collectibles.
“My mom’s been up here for about six years,” he said, “so I try to plan a trip this time of year to come up before their open house and help them, and if I can, try to do something special for them.”
Last year’s “something special” was a handmade life-size Santa Claus which subsequently sold to a local photographer as a seasonal backdrop.
Walker says he enjoys designing the seasonal window display.
“I love the three-dimensional effect that you can get sometimes, especially in a window. It’s kind of like watching a painting coming to life,” he said. “I enjoy that part of it.”
And the good part is Warren County residents get to enjoy the results of Walker’s professional design talents as well, at least from October through Christmas that is.