Experience the Road to Empowerment at Unveiling of Nova Southeastern University’s 2010 African Presence Art Exhibition

Original mid-20th century “Highwaymen” art exhibition is FREE to the public at NSU library’s gallery all month long, with opening reception on Feb. 4

FT. LAUDERDALE-DAVIE, Fla. – At a time when being black in Florida meant being subjected to Jim Crow laws and limited opportunity, 26 African American youths from the Fort Pierce/Vero Beach area broke the mold by forming a loosely organized group of entrepreneurial artists that came to be known as the Highwaymen.

These socially disenfranchised artists achieved the American Dream during their heyday in the 1950s and 60s, and went on to help shape the visual legacy of Florida history by creating more than 250,000 oil paintings featuring the Sunshine State’s beautiful landscapes.*

Now, a collection of these inspiring, original, mid-20th century paintings will be on view Feb. 4 through April 10, 2010 in the Second Floor Gallery of the Alvin Sherman Library, Research, and Information Technology Center, located on Nova Southeastern University’s (NSU) main campus at 3100 Ray Ferrero Jr. Boulevard in Davie.

The exhibition, Road to Empowerment: Art of the Florida Highwaymen, is organized by Museum of Art | Fort Lauderdale, Nova Southeastern University and consists of more than 40 pieces of artwork selected from regional and private collections.

Upcoming events related to the exhibit include:

• Road to Empowerment: Art of the Florida Highwaymen
  NSU’s Seventh Annual African Presence Art Exhibition 2010 Grand Opening
  Thursday, Feb. 4 from 6:30-8:30 p.m., FREE and open to the public but RSVP needed
  Celebrate the beginning of NSU’s month-long celebration of Black History with the opening reception of Road to Empowerment: Art of the Florida Highwaymen. Featuring hors d’oeuvres, choral and dance performances, blues music, a brief explanation of the significance of the Highwaymen, and a ritual “Pouring of the Libation” ceremony to honor African ancestors in the Flight Deck Courtyard adjacent to NSU’s Don Taft University Center, and NSU’s Alvin Sherman Library. The celebration will then move to the library’s Second Floor Gallery for the exhibition unveiling. Reception location: NSU’s Don Taft University Center on main campus at 3301College Ave. in Davie. Call 954-262-5353 to RSVP.

• The Florida Highwaymen: An Evening with Author & Exhibit Curator Gary Monroe
  Tuesday, Feb. 16 from 7-9 p.m., FREE and open to the public
  Gary Monroe, M.F.A., is the author of several books on the Florida Highwaymen, including his seminal The Highwaymen: Florida’s African American Artists, and he is the curator of “Road to Empowerment, Art of the Florida Highwaymen.”  His talk will provide the artists’ back-story, and examine the misconception that the Highwaymen paintings were composite practices with numerous painters contributing to each piece, when in fact each artist painted their own works and had a style unlike the others. Sponsored by NSU’s Farquhar College of Arts & Sciences. Location: Second Floor Gallery at the Alvin Sherman Library, at 3100 Ray Ferrero Jr. Boulevard in Davie. For more information, call 954-262-8021.

FREE guided tours of the exhibition are being scheduled and additional Road to Empowerment events are pending. 

Road to Empowerment is part of the university’s Seventh Annual African Presence Art Exhibition and 2010 Black History Month celebration, which includes a month long calendar of compelling discussions, engaging performances, educational workshops, award winning film screenings and dynamic speakers. Road to Empowerment is sponsored by NSU’s Office of University Relations, and NSU’s Museum of Art | Fort Lauderdale.

The exhibition is FREE and open to the public at NSU’s Alvin Sherman Library during the following hours:

• Monday through Thursday from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m.
• Fridays from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m.
• Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m.
• Sundays from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.

For more information about the Road to Empowerment art exhibition, please call (954) 262-4637. For more information about NSU’s extensive offering of Black History Month events, please visit www.nova.edu/blackhistory .

Photo Credit (above, right):

• (1) Harold Newton  |  Untitled  |  Oil on canvas  |  23” x 29”  |  Collection of Scott Schlesinger

* Research Credit:

• Gary Monroe, M.F.A., guest curator and author of Highwaymen: Florida’s African-American Artists

Media Contact:
Andra Liwag, NSU Office of Public Affairs
954-262-5309 (office), 954-873-8494 (cell), andrali@nova.edu