FLORIDIAN SCAPES is a Conversation with Author Deborah Pollack and Dr. Catherine Lowe on aspects of the landscape art of Florida. This is a conversation exploring paintings that feature authentic landscapes of Florida. Included in the discussion are works by artists such as A.E. Backus and the Florida Highwaymen, Hermann Herzog, Lupe Lawrence, Lee Mainella, Jane Peterson, Laura Woodward, and others. Serenity is celebrated, in these artists’ works, against a dichotomy of the cultivated and the rugged, natural terrain of the peninsula. Artists were inspired by green palms, red hibiscus, vermilion royal poinciana, and pink skies — capturing the naturally occurring colors of Floridian landscapes before the early 1900s. Later, the ‘Scape’ became a ‘fantasy quilt’ of lush green tropic themes mixed with reproductions of Euro luxury coastline to appeal to outsiders. Meanwhile, the marshy lands of Florida, sometimes referred to as, ‘the glades’ with their bubbling, burps and sometimes sulfur smells, along with ‘scrub lands’ found on coastal and inland sand ridges, provided a different narrative. This story revealed native Florida — neutral, ochre, and verdant hues of the peninsula’s sub-tropical environment with calming and soothing winter temperatures, dry and wet seasons with summer rains, and the presence of native birds, plants, and wildlife within an organic and self-sustaining environment of intrinsic value. Please join us for this discussion in appreciation of the art of Floridian-Scapes.
Doors Open at 5pm | Lecture begins at 5:30pm
