In 1960s Ft. Pierce, Florida, a group of 26 self-taught African-American artists sold their 24” x 36” Upson board paintings out of their car trunks. Even without a name for themselves, they made a living by painting landscapes in their backyards and selling them on the highway. Only decades later, in 1994, did these painters … Continue reading Florida Highwaymen: A History
Mary Ann Carroll: First Lady of the Highwaymen
Today we proudly publish Mary Ann Carroll: First Lady of the Highwaymen by fine arts professor and photographer Gary Monroe. His new book features color plates of Mary Ann Carroll’s most famous landscape paintings and tells the never-before-told story of her hard-fought journey to provide for her family and make a name for herself in a man’s world. Carroll … Continue reading Mary Ann Carroll: First Lady of the Highwaymen
Gary Monroe Considers the Fate of Silver Springs
Florida's vanishing springs, an ongoing concern for the state, have been a hot topic in the news again recently. In this guest post, beloved UPF author and Florida native, Gary Monroe, responds to the state's intention to reclaim Silver Springs from Festival Fun Parks and attempt to prevent further environmental degradation of the natural wonder. The Fate of … Continue reading Gary Monroe Considers the Fate of Silver Springs
Introducing Six Degrees of Separation: An Occasional Feature Wherein We Make an Elaborate Effort to Link Our Books to (Occasionally Obscure) Events, People, or Twitter Trends
[This first of these features doesn’t count because it only takes two degrees to get to one of our books, but here’s an example of how they'll will work.] We are saddened by the recent news of Jane Russell’s death at age 89. Russell was a voluptuous pin-up girl, admired by millions of soldiers during … Continue reading Introducing Six Degrees of Separation: An Occasional Feature Wherein We Make an Elaborate Effort to Link Our Books to (Occasionally Obscure) Events, People, or Twitter Trends
The Florida Bookshelf 