Painting Southwest Florida’s History

By Don Manley

Southwest Florida’s days as a frontier outpost is the subject of a new art exhibit at the Marco Island History Museum.

Entitled “Painting SW Florida History,” the show depicts life in Collier County from the late 1800s to the 1920s. The artworks tell the stories of settlers like Tommie Barfield, who arrived on Caxambas with her family in 1902; W.T. Collier, who settled on Marco in 1870; and Barron Gift Collier, who bought large tracts of Lee County in the early 1920s.

At the

opening reception on Tuesday, Jan. 7, the winners of the show’s juried portion were announced. Well-known Marco-based artist Malenda Trick served as juror.

Linda Chambers of Marco captured first place. Pete Sottong of Naples took second, and Inez Hudson of Marco placed third. They will have the opportunity to show their work as a featured artist in the museum’s gallery at a later date.

The original creations of 24 artists from Collier and Lee counties comprise “Painting SW Florida History,” which is put on by the

MIHM and the Marco Island Foundation for the Arts.

The artists worked from black-and-white, historical photographs provided by Collier County Museums and by Marco Island historians, Bill and Betsy Perdichizzi.

Visitors will have the opportunity to vote for their favorite painting of this art show until March 1, when the People’s Choice Award will be announced.

The show runs until March 21, 2015.

The museum is located at 180 S. Heathwood Dr. For more information, call 239-642-1440 or 239-389-6447, or email at themihs@aol.com. The museum is open 9 AM-4 PM, Tuesday-Saturday.