arts & entertainment

Florida is steeped in fascinating history and culture, with each story more fascinating than the next. Vero Beach Museum of Art (VBMA) has invited two such storytellers to the Museum this summer as part of the Florida Humanities series to share their research and knowledge of Florida artists and architects, along with what inspired them.

The first offering, Picturing Paradise: From John James Audubon to the Florida Highwaymen led by historian Keri Watson, is June 13, 2026 at 1 p.m. Watson will explore how the Florida landscape has provided aesthetic inspiration to artists for centuries. John James Audubon, Harriet Beecher Stowe, and Winslow Homer among others, came in search of native flora and fauna as well as the state’s natural beauty and warm climate. Expect an engaging history of landscape painters.

Keri Watson is a professor of art history as well as the assistant director of the School of Visual Arts and Design at the University of Central Florida. She is the author of Florida’s New Deal Parks and Post Office Murals; This is America: Re-Viewing the Art of the United States; and co-editor of the Routledge Companion to Art and Disability.

On September 12, 2026 at 3 p.m., VBMA presents Frank Lloyd Wright and His Influence on Florida Architecture with Wayne Wood. This entertaining program will give the audience an in-depth understanding of the vast work of America’s greatest architect. Although most of Frank Lloyd Wright’s buildings were constructed in the American Midwest, many Floridians are surprised to learn of his presence in Florida and this remarkable part of our state’s history.

Wayne Wood has been called the “undisputed godfather of preservation in Jacksonville.” An author, historian, and artist, he has published 15 books on Northeast Florida, including Jacksonville’s Architectural Heritage: Landmarks For the Future. 

Both lectures are free as part of VBMA’s Second Saturdays programming, though pre-registration is required.

Funding for Florida Talks programs was provided through a grant from Florida Humanities with funds from the Nationals Endowment for the Humanities. Any views, findings, conclusions or recommendations expressed in these programs do not necessarily represent those of Florida Humanities or the National Endowment for the Humanities.