Art In Florida

The final chapter covers government-sponsored art in the 1930s, including murals in public buildings and the Index of American Design. Collected here are 160 illustrations of Florida art, 100 in color. The illustrated paintings were gathered from public and private collections all over the country, many reproduced here for the first time.

This book illustrates in full color a generous selection of paintings, drawings, and prints by some of the world's most significant artists who came to Florida from 1823 to 1950 to capture the "Sunshine State."

Discover some of Florida’s most fascinating personalities in this entertaining kaleidoscope of interviews. Made in Florida showcases a colorful lineup of notable people who got their start in the state and who have helped make it the unique, diverse place it is today. Hear from Carl Hiaasen and Dave Barry about their weirdest writing inspirations. Discover why Shaquille O’Neal never complains. Find out what happens when Burt Reynolds goes to Costco. Listen to Theresa Manuel’s experiences as one of the first black women to compete in the Olympics. Learn about the lives of Seminole Tribe elder Louise Gopher, pop art painter Romero Britto, NASA senior executive JoAnn Morgan, circus daredevil Bello Nock, football coach Steve Spurrier, state CFO Alex Sink, and Muhammad Ali’s “fight doctor” Ferdie Pacheco. In addition to the widely celebrated, Art Levy introduces many unsung individuals. Meet innovative industrialists like “Chainsaw Al” and dedicated naturalists like “The Shark Lady.” Mingle with a legendary rancher, a civil rights historian, and a commercial fisherman. Marvel at an anticrime crusader, a space skydiver, and a snake-venom enthusiast. These and other stars—many of whom rarely give such extensive interviews—talk family and work, joys and worries, failures and triumphs, dislikes and desires. Levy has thoughtfully selected their words from ten years of conversations. Each person tells a different story of Florida from a perspective all their own. Read on and get ready to laugh and lament, to be surprised and inspired.

For thousands of years, the Indians of Florida created exquisite objects from the natural materials available to them - wood, bone, stone, clay, and shell. This stunning full-color book, the first devoted exclusively to the artistic achievements of the Florida aborigines, describes and pictures 116 of these masterpieces. A brief history of the consequences of European infiltration and later investigations by explorers and archaeologists sets the stage for consideration of the works themselves. They date from the Paleoindian period (ca. 9500-8000 B.C.) to the mid-sixteenth century and include utilitarian creations, instruments of personal adornment and magic, and objects indicating status, paying homage to ancestors, or aiding the dead in their journey into the next world.

A visual guide to approximately 20 Florida art colonies and districts. The book will discusses in detail a variety of towns in Florida renowned as “Art Colonies,” together with several “Arts Districts” in both small towns and larger cities that have been designated by the local government and/or by developers as neighborhoods set aside to foster the arts. Many of the communities sponsor annual art festivals or shows that have been held for more than 40 years. The book features color photographs that capture the variety of art forms that are uniquely Florida and covers special aspects of art in Florida such as the great number of Florida artists, the influence of arts projects and social realism of the New Deal, mural painting in Florida, the “Highwaymen,” and the extremely rich 19th and 20th century history of Florida artists. Colonies and districts include: Bradenton Village of the Arts, Eau Gallie Arts District, St Petersburg Warehouse Arts District and Central Arts District, Tampa and Tallahassee.

Presented in full color, this collection of examples from Florida artists attests to an intensely personal yet universal desire for self-expression.

An extensive study of the Sunshine State's folk art legacy

In advance of celebrating its twentieth anniversary, the Samuel P. Harn Museum of Art presents this beautiful catalog of highlights of American art drawn from its permanent collection. Each work is represented by a full-page photograph and an accompanying description that places the piece and its creator in artistic and historical context. American Selections features eighty-eight works selected from the 2,490 American works in the museum's modern, contemporary, photography, and works on paper collections. The artists represented include Diane Arbus, Georgia O'Keeffe, Childe Hassam, Andy Warhol (the only artist included in the book twice), and many others, both well known and emerging. American painting of the first half of the twentieth century was one of the core collections when the Harn Museum opened its doors in 1990. In the two decades since, the American holdings have been greatly expanded, particularly with paintings, drawings, installations, and photographs from the second half of the century, thanks to the generosity of many donors.