By Harold Newton – one of Florida’s Highwaymen

The newest exhibition at Miami International Airport features 28 oil landscapes made by a group of 26 African-American artists known today as the Highwaymen.

According to the exhibition notes:

“The 26 self-taught Highwaymen painted their way out of citrus groves and packinghouse jobs in the Ft. Pierce area from the late 1950’s to 1980 by creating idyllic images of Florida’s tropical landscapes and peddling their work door-to-door throughout Florida’s east coast. The group painted thousands of portraits that were dismissed as “motel art” at the time. Today, the paintings are celebrated as the work of American folk artists that once sold for $25 each but now go for thousands to owners such as Michelle Obama, Shaquille O’Neal and Jeb Bush.”

By James Gibson

The Highwaymen exhibition will be up through June at MIA’s Central Terminal Gallery.

By Sam Newton