Florida Highwaymen Art Exhibition March 20th and 21st in Pompano Beach

Art by eleven members of the famed Florida Highwaymen will be exhibited Saturday, March 21st, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., at the historic Sample-McDougald House, 450 NE 10th Street, Pompano Beach, Florida. The art show and sale is presented by the Sample-McDougald House Preservation Society and the Pompano Beach Historical Society. Admission is $5 per person.

The Florida Highwaymen are a group of 26 landscape artists who have been called "The Last Great American Art Movement of the 20th century.” This group of self-taught and self-mentoring African-American artists, who began painting in the mid-1950s, created a large body of work - utilizing basic construction materials rather than traditional art supplies - that has become a timeless collection of iconic Florida landscape scenes. As no galleries would originally accept their works, the artists sold the oil paintings by the thousands during the 1960s and 70s out of the trunks of their cars, along roadsides throughout Florida.

The surviving Highwaymen, most now in their seventies, represent an important chapter in America’s culture and history, and have been called a National Treasure. Twenty-six Florida Highwaymen were inducted into the Florida Artists Hall of Fame in 2004.  The March 22nd show will feature the works of nine of these artists, and is one of the largest public gatherings of Highwaymen at a single venue.  As of this date, the following Highwaymen are scheduled to participate: Curtis Arnett, Al Black, Willie Daniels, James Gibson, Doretha Hair Truesdell. R. L. Lewis, John Maynor, Roy McLendon Sr., Willie C. Reagan, Carnell Smith, and Charles Walker.

A ticketed reception to meet the artists, pre-purchase paintings and preview the show is scheduled for the evening of March 20thfrom 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. The $35 tickets include food and beverages on the grounds of the Sample-McDougald House, as well as entertainment, and are available by calling 954 691-5686 or purchase at PompanoHistory.com.

The Sample-McDougald House, located at 450 NE 10th Street in Pompano Beach, is one of South Florida's most historic structures, dating from the pioneer era of northern Broward County. The house was built on Dixie Highway, but was relocated to its current site to insure its preservation.  It is listed in the National Register of Historic Places.

For more information about the Florida Highwaymen art show and sale, please call 954 292-8040.