The Sanibel Shell Show is all about unique shell displays and special ways to enjoy mollusks – there has been a giant, Fighting Conch-covered heart, a “Shell Love Bug” car, and even a tricycle entirely covered with shells. This year’s Sanibel Shell Show will feature something even more dramatic – a mannequin dressed entirely in shells!
“Shelly”, a full-size shell-encrusted mannequin, is a work of art created especially for the 2024 Sanibel Shell Show by local Sanibel artists Andrea Schopf and Linda Graves Arnold. The local shells used were collected on the beaches of Sanibel by the artists, and inspiration came from a donated mannequin who needed a new purpose. It was the perfect opportunity to create a unique, one-of-a-kind piece that could welcome guests to the 2024 Shell Show. “Shelly” will be an official greeter, stationed right next to the entrance to the Shell Show Exhibit Hall located in the Marriott Sanibel Harbour Resort and Spa, just before the Sanibel Causeway.
Many different types of shells were used to dress “Shelly”, and the club invites everyone to come to the show to meet her and see this fabulous creation on Friday and Saturday, March 8th and 9th, 2024. Show hours are 9am-4pm both days, and a $5 cash donation is all that is required to attend. “Shelly” will be part of a live auction on the second day of the Shell Show (Saturday March 9th) at 2 PM). If you are interested in bidding on Shelly and can’t attend the show, please contact Karen Silverstein, President of the Sanibel Shell Club with your bid.
Sponsored by the Sanibel-Captiva Shell Club, the Sanibel Shell Show is the club’s annual fundraiser that provides research and education grants to local non-profits such as the Bailey-Matthews National Shell Museum & Aquarium and the Sanibel Captiva Conservation Foundation (SCCF). These grants support work in water quality, conservation, malacology, and conchology.
