My Highwaymen Journey
I discovered the Florida Highwaymen at the Venice Art Center in 2011, where my wife and I purchased a beautiful James Gibson Royal Poinciana painting. I was so drawn to this piece that I decided that someday I would teach myself to paint.
In the meantime, I scoured the Internet, galleries, books, auctions, and antique shops, searching for ideas and inspiration. Along the way I also discovered more than a hundred fine Florida landscape artists whose work appeared to have been similarly inspired. When I finally retired from my usability consulting practice in 2016, I converted my home office into a studio, surrounded myself with Highwaymen-style art that I had collected, and began to paint. My favorite topics turned out to be the Royal Poinciana and "fire skies". I remain self-taught.
2011: My wife Karen and I first discovered Florida Highwaymen art and began to learn their history when we visited the Venice Art Center in 2011 and brought home this Royal Poinciana painting by Highwayman James Gibson.
I promised myself that someday I would teach myself to paint in the Highwaymen style.
2014: We soon decided that the artists themselves should benefit from their talents, so we began buying directly from them, rather than from resellers.
Shown here are Karen and I purchasing paintings from James Gibson at his home in Fort Pierce.
2015: For inspiration, I decided to surround myself with "Highwaymen-inspired" landscapes.
Shown here is the first such painting I purchased, painted by Florida artist Stan Prather. This beautiful painting brought to my mind original Highwaymen artists Sam and Harold Newton.
2016: Finally fully retired, I was able to begin teaching myself to paint for the first time.
I converted my home office into a studio and filled the walls with Highwaymen and other Florida landscape paintings for inspiration.
2016: Shown here is my first "Highwaymen-inspired" painting, a Royal Poinciana in a park overlooking the Indian River. Among the Highwaymen to have painted a similar scene are brothers Harold and Sam Newton, along with Sam's son, 2nd-generation artist Tracy Newton.
I chose to use this painting as the logo for the website I had just designed, FelfoldyArt.com .
2018: Within two years, I had painted and collected far too many works to display at home.
I began holding exhibitions and sales to support local charities, a practice that I continue today.
Shown here is my first such exhibition, to benefit the visual arts program at nearby Loveland Center.
2020: I began to use a variety of software tools to make my own photos look like paintings. Printed on archival canvas or photo paper, these have become my popular "Photo Art" series.
When I really like the digital enhancement, I paint it in acrylics. Shown here is a treatment of my favorite theme, the Royal Poinciana.
Print