Pelicans in Paradise

"Press"ton Duck in front of the Pensacola News Journal building on Romana Street

Ducks in Paradise is a public art project organized by the Pensacola News Journal in which duck statues of reinforced fiberglass are decorated by various artists, selected by the statues' sponsors, and placed at various outdoor locations around the downtown Pensacola area.

Ducks in Paradise was inspired by the similar CowParade project, which Pensacola News Journal president & publisher Denise Ivey witnessed during a 2002 trip to Portland, Oregon. Each fiberglass duck is nearly 5 feet tall and weighs about 70 pounds; each duck sits on a 48 inch by 40 inch, 450-pound cement "perch."

A total of 41 ducks have been commissioned for the project: the initial project included twenty-one ducks launched between June 23-July 2, 2004, followed by a "Second Flight" between November 15-19, and five more in Spring 2005. One remains unfinished. On May 9, 2005, the ducks began to be removed, cleaned and returned to their owners/sponsors. Many have remained in the same place.

All duck designs have been reproduced in the form of scale replicas, which are available for purchase from the Pensacola News Journal. Other Ducks in Paradise products include T-shirts, posters and magnets. All proceeds from sponsorship and merchandise go to benefit the News Journal's Newspapers in Education literacy program.

Gallery of Ducks

Five Flags
Designer: Damon Bowie
Artist: Charles Bendzans
Sponsor: Pensacola News Journal
Spirit Catcher
Designer: Washington Ledesma
Sponsor:Pensacola News Journal
Buck
Designer: Larry Paulsen
Sponsor: Wachovia Bank
Pensacola is a Paradise
Designer: Valerie Aune
Sponsor:Cox Communications
Blue Angels 1
Sponsor:Naval Aviation Museum Foundation
Dr. Peli-Pain
Designer: Evan Levin
Sponsor: Dr. Kurt A. Krueger of Pain Consultants of West Florida
Emerald Coast
Designer: Patsy Pennington
Sponsor:Shirley Mertins
Patriot
Designer: Patti Russell
Sponsor: Gulf Power
Dr. SurgiCan
Designer: Chip Spirson
Sponsor:Baptist Health Care
Pelikini
Designer: Sherry Barnett
Sponsor: Gwen Appelquist of Coldwell Banker JME Realty
Duck Brief(s)
Designer: Sherry Barnett
Sponsor: Clark Partington Hart Larry Bond & Stackhouse
The Godfeather
Designer: Evan Levin
Sponsor: Portofino Island Resort
Golden Peli-Triever
Designer: Lydia Davis
Sponsor: Dee and Kurt Krueger
Segrado Ducko
Designer: Joseph A. Hobbs
Sponsor: Sacred Heart Health System
Community Spirit
Designer: Larry Paulsen
Sponsor: Northwest Florida Blood Center
The Consuming Duck
Designer: Felic Fussner
Ron Stewart
Sponsor: Ken and Jackie Andrews
Homer
Designer: Larry Paulsen
Sponsor:Pensacola Ducks
Don Tristan de Ducko
Designer: Thomas Jacob Cawthon (armor)
Artists: Joan and Ellis Bullock, Sarah Turner
Sponsor: E.W. Bullock Associates
Flossie
Designer: Evan Levin
Sponsor: Stu Bonnin
Natural Duck
Designer: Ron Stewart
Sponsor: Santa Rosa Medical Center
Mermaids in Paradise
Designer: Quenby Mitchell
Sponsor: J-J Properties of Pensacola
"Press"ton
Designer: Marcia Moritz
Sponsor: Pensacola News Journal
Peli-Queen Elizabeak I
Designer: Diane Goeller
Sponsor: Trinity Collection Jewelry
Patriotic Pappy
Designer: Bill Brown
Sponsor: Dr. Max and Patty Kattner
Dewey D. Duck
Designer: Suzanne Robbert
Sponsor: Friends of the Pensacola Public Library
Pelvis
Designer: Patsy Pennington
Sponsor: AmSouth Bank
Azalican
Designer: Toni New
Sponsor: STOA/Carlos + Law Architects
Reaching Beyond the Wing
Designer: Lydia Davis
Sponsor: Roy Jones, Jr.
Robo Duck
Designer: Charles Kunze
Sponsor: Institute for Human and Machine Cognition
Mr. Duck
Designer: Chip Spirson
Sponsor: Thompson-Briggs Developers
E Duck Unum
Designer: Dr. Steve Zieman
Sponsor: John S. Carr, Neal Nash, [Eric Nickelsen]], Ed Chadbourne, Jr. and Ronald Swaine of Nature Walk
Pelican Blues
Designer: Patti Russell
Sponsor: Network Telephone
Perdi Duck
Designer: Valerie Aune
Sponsor: Pointe South Real Estate
Smilin' Psychedelican
Designer: Quenby Mitchell
Sponsor: Woodfin Cabassa Orthodontics
Peg Leg Pete
Designer: Marcia Moritz
Sherry Barnett
Sponsor: Marcus and Karla Schmitz
Jeremiah Duck Lighthouse Keeper
Designer: Gordon Levi
Sponsor: Jim and Norma Johnson
PeliJustice
Designer: Craig Granger
Sponsor: Ezra Friedlander
El Perdido Duckino
Designer: Ron Roland
Sponsor: WCI Communities
Grandpa-elican
Designer: Diane Goeller
Sponsor: Delta Health Group
Tail of Two Cities
Designer: Riece Walton
Sponsor: Kerrigan Estess Rankin McLeod and Thompson, LLP
Paper Dottie
Designer: Linda McNeill
Sponsor: International Paper Company

Duck locations

Initially located in close proximity to each other in the downtown area, the Duck statues were returned to the original sponsors or sold to the highest bidder after the program's end in 2005. Sadly, some were vandalized or stolen and will never be relocated. The map below is imported from a Google Maps project by User:RenegadeSith.

Map incomplete. Any user who is interested in contributing to this map is strongly urged to contact the map author.

<googlemap version="0.9" lat="30.420848" lon="-87.237625" zoom="11" height="500" width="100%"> http://www.pensapedia.com/mediawiki/files/pelicans.kml </googlemap>

Original Duck Locations (map inaccurate)

Finding the ducks became a popular scavenger hunt during the program's run. Incomplete map below. See also: Pelican Map and PDF <googlemap lat="30.412928" lon="-87.215223" type="map" zoom="16" width="650">

30.411728, -87.21252,