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Article Courtesy of The
Orlando Sentinel
By Roger Simmons
Published April 30, 2018
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The “Starry Night” home in Central Florida’s Mount Dora has drawn the ire of
city officials there for its Vincent van Gogh-inspired murals across the
residence and a wall in front of it.
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Mount Dora officials say the “Starry
Night” home of Nancy Nemhauser and Lubomir Jastrzebski
violates city code, but attorneys for Nemhauser and
Jastrzebski recently received a temporary injunction from a
federal judge to stop $100-a-day fines by the city, saying
their First Amendment and due process rights are being
violated.
The dispute was featured on NBC’s “Today” show on Tuesday
morning, drawing national attention to standoff in the Lake
County.
The Orlando Sentinel has been covering the saga of Mount
Dora’s “Starry Night” home since 2017. Here are some
highlights: In September 2017, a magistrate said that a
rendition of Vincent van Gogh’s world-famous “Starry Night”
painted on the resident’s wall and house wasn’t graffiti —
but still must go. “That means paint it in a solid color, no
graphics, no design, nothing that is going to end up
attracting attention of the public,” said Magistrate David
Tegeler, who ruled it wasn’t a permitted sign under city
code. A code-enforcement officer originally said it was
graffiti. Nemhauser was told Friday to cover the iconic
painting in the city known for its artsy charm. Her property
is just outside a downtown full of boutique businesses. She
was given 30 days to comply or face fines of up to $250 a
day. Her attorney, James Homich, said it was “probable” they
would appeal the decision in Circuit Court.
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A cause célèbre for art versus government, the
mural of Vincent Van Gogh's "Starry Night" on a home and outside
wall has sparked controversy in Mount Dora, where it was cited as
being against city code.
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In
October 2017, Orlando Sentinel columnist Lauren Ritchie wrote about the “Starry
Night” house. She wrote, “The point of the dispute in Mount Dora over a mural
painted on a house isn’t whether it’s pretty or the most hideous reproduction
ever of a master work. This is a property rights issue easily fixed by the city
changing its intrusive codes. Unfortunately, the dispute over the reproduction
of Vincent van Gogh’s “Starry Night” on a house and wall is a sign of a
troubling trend — that of municipalities starting to act like homeowner
associations.”
In December 2017, an attorney representing Mount Dora asked Magistrate David
Tegeler for the maximum fine for violation of city code, $250 a day, but Tegeler
reduced it to $100 a day. He found Nemhauser and Jastrzebski not in compliance
for 31 days, fining them a total $3,100. His earlier ruling required them to
paint the house “a solid color, no graphics, no design, nothing that is going to
end up attracting attention of the public.” Read that story here.
In February 2018, federal judge has halted the daily-accruing fines levied by
Mount Dora — now totaling more than $10,000 — against homeowners accused of
violating city code by having Vincent van Gogh’s “Starry Night” painted on the
walls of their home.
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