centers. These important contributions
have strengthened the visual arts in our
community. Some have long histories, like
the art center in St. Pete, which morphed
into the Morean Art Center and will
celebrate its 100th anniversary next year.
The Tampa Bay Art Center became the
Tampa Museum of Art. The Art Center
Sarasota, Longboat Key Art Center and Art
League of Manatee County also have long
histories of contributing to the cultural
growth of their communities; and there
are many smaller centers like the Old
Hyde Park, Suntan and Beach Art Centers.
However, I believe the most successful
and influential art center in the Tampa
Bay area has been the Dunedin Fine Art
Center, with now 42 years of teaching and
exhibiting excellence.
All of these institutions began through
grassroots efforts. Through organizations
like women’s clubs, junior leagues, art
clubs and other interested groups, several
important art events have grown over
the past 40 years. The major outdoor art
festivals began this way, including Art
Harvest in Dunedin, which opens the
season in November (and is celebrating its
52nd year); followed by the Sarasota Festival
of the Arts (in February); the Gasparilla
Festival of the Arts in Tampa (in March); and
the Mainsail Art Festival in St. Petersburg
and Tarpon Springs Fine Arts Festival (both
in April). While these are the principle
outdoor shows, there are countless other
art venues throughout the year that also
have tremendous influence; although,
unfortunately, some important ones have
come and gone. Historically, these include
the Artists and Writers Ball in Tampa
beginning in the late 1970s; Art for Life,
which brought the visual arts community
together from the late 1980s into the 1990s
for AIDS support and awareness; and the
ACC (American Crafts Council) shows in
the 1990s. Numerous arts organizations
like PAVA (Professional Association of
Visual Artists), FLAG (Florida Artists
Group), TESA (The Exhibition Society of
Artists); and group affiliates associated
with specific media like Florida Craftsmen,
Florida Watercolor Society, the Miniature
Art Society of Florida; and, more recently,
the Tour de Clay event for ceramic artists,
are just a few of the wonderful groups that
provide collegial opportunities for area
artists to show and market their works.
Our tapestry is completed through
regional support networks. These
include our city and county Arts
Councils (although, unfortunately, we
had the demise of the Pinellas County
Arts Council in 2011, but it is currently
being rejuvenated through an initiative
The Dunedin Fine Art Center has grown dramatically.
called Creative Pinellas). Changes to our
urban landscapes have come through
“art in public places” committees. When
you visit any of our airports, government
buildings, libraries, college campuses or
other public spaces, you will see how art is
now a symbolic part of our environment.
Awareness of the visual arts come from
nonprofits like the TBBCA (Tampa Bay
Businesses for Culture and the Arts); events
like Lights on Tampa; gatherings of national
organizations, such as the Handweaver’s
Guild of America’s Convergence convention
in 2008 (which brought over 5,000
attendees from around the world); and
the huge NCECA (National Council for
Educators of Ceramic Arts) convention in
2011. All of these events, conventions and
art gatherings, both large and small, have
served to introduce our Tampa Bay area
to national and international audiences.
Granting organizations from local and
governmental agencies, including the State
Division of Cultural Affairs, plus support
through initiatives like Visit Florida and
our regional Convention and Visitors
Bureaus (CVB), are now being enhanced
by local funding through organizations
like the Community Foundation of
Sarasota County, founded in 1978, and
the Community Foundation of Tampa Bay,
founded in 1990, that have expanded to
include trusts like the Frank E. Duckwald
Fund. And, of course, we must never
forget that most funding for cultural
organizations, locally and nationally,
comes from individuals – or, as WEDU
says, “from viewers like you.” In our area,
we have been fortunate to have many
philanthropic supporters for the visual
arts, including Bill and Hazel Hough, Dick
and Cornelia Corbett, and Ulla and Arthur
Searing, to name only a few.
Commercial art galleries, while not
as strong as I believe they should be for
an area this populated and with such
strong visual arts and producing artists,
had humble beginnings out of frame
shops until the 1970s. Trend House in
Tampa, Anderson-Marsh Gallery in
St. Petersburg, and Harmon Gallery in
Sarasota are a few of the early galleries s
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